FMNP Update

The FMNP continues to grow. Since classes began in September
Sof 2001, more than 1,500 FMNP graduates have completed
SFreshwater Wetlands and Coastal Systems modules. The Upland
I Habitats module is nearing completion. Instructor workshops are
Planned during November (see p. 2). Instructors, please RSVP to
Ginger regarding which workshop you plan to attend.
SThe FMNP has caught the attention of other states. In response
P to requests for assistance, we are hosting a National Workshop
for 8 states interested in forming similar Master Naturalist
programs. This is a direct reflection on the high-quality
instructors and motivated graduates that have made the FMNP
so successful. Thanks to all of you.

Marty Main, FMNP Program Leader

FMNP Instructor Spotlight: David Griffis

-UNIVERS ITY OF David has worked for the Volusia County Cooperative Extension
FL rA Service for 28 years providing environmental education (EE)
programs on natural resource issues.

How did you get involved with EE?
IFAS EXTEN SIO N I was always interested in helping others. Originally I
wanted to be a teacher, however I decided I did not want to
Spend my life in a classroom. After graduation from UF, in
SSoil Conservation and Land Use Planning, I accepted my
county extension job where I had a greater opportunity to
teach throughout the community.

What is your most memorable EE moment?
In 1978, I was talking to elementary students about soils. I
had prepared for the class with slides and soil samples.
Before I began my prepared presentation, a little boy raised
his hand and asked. "Is the devil in the soil?" My first
thought was"four years of college and I cannot answer this
child's question." However, after a brief silence, I replied that
David Griffis, Volusia County agent, explains the the devil can be anywhere.
importance of mangroves to an FMNP Coastal Class.
What are your favorite natural history readings?
Program Update ........................................ 1 Being a native Floridian, I really enjoyed A Land Remembered
Uplands Module Instructor Workshops/ by Patrick Smith. I also recommend reading any field guide
you can get your hands on.
Education/Conservation Events .................... 2
Wild Eye ......................... ............ 3 What is your vision for Florida's Future?
Interpretive Tracks ........................................ 3 Florida has had 4 hurricanes and one tropical storm strike in
less than six weeks. These natural events could have severe
Class Information/Contacts ........................... 4 economic and environmental impacts for many years to
come. Will people reconsider moving to Florida? Can the
environmental devastation be overcome? Hopefully yes, but
it will take time.

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Fall Environmental Education and Conservation Events

FMNP Instructor Workshops (please rsvp to Ginger Allen for planning purposes)
Southwest Florida Instructor Workshop November 9, 2004, The Conservancy of Southwest Florida, Naples
Southeast Florida Instructor Workshop November 17, 2004, Grassy Waters Preserve, West Palm Beach
Central Florida Instructor Workshop November 16, 2004, Camp Bayou Outdoor Learning Center, Ruskin
Northwest Florida Instructor Workshop November 30, 2004, Walton County Extension Office, DeFuniak Springs
Northeast Florida Instructor Workshop December 2, 2004, Mike Roess Golden Head State Park, Keystone Heights

Northeast FMNP graduate regional meeting (St. Johns, Nassau, Flagler, Clay, Putnam, Baker counties)
December 3-4, Speakers and field trips, Trout Creek Park, Orangedale, Florida. Save the date....more to follow.

First Annual Rookery Bay Birding Festival: January 22 and 23, 2005
Educational events and field trips, Save the date..............more to follow

Every Saturday in October, 10am~12N, Jean Domey Memorial Fall Wildflower Walks
Morningside Nature Center- meet at front office..........FREE
A Naturalist Guided Wildflower Walk, featuring our spectacular fall wildflower bloom. The walk will include enough
basic botany for you to identify plants in the future, wear comfortable walking shoes and bring guides you may like to
use along the way. Meet at education office. For more information call 334-2170 or visit www.natureoperations.org.

Pioneer Days, Saturday, December 11, 2004 from 10 am to 4 pm
Crowley Museum, Sarasota: http://crowleymuseumnaturectr.org
Experience the life of the Florida pioneer with blacksmiths, sugar cane grinding, story telling, basket weaving, dulcimer
music, gourd crafts, and games for children. Food and beverages will be available for purchase.

Rain Barrel Workshop, Oct 16, 10 a.m. Brooker Creek Preserve. Workshop is free. Pre-registration is required.
Conserve water in your landscape using rainwater harvested from your roof. You will learn how to construct and set-
up your own rainbarrel from Extension staff and volunteers. Barrels with a spigot are available to workshop attendees
for $20.00 ($15.00 for FBG members and Master Gardeners). Phone (727) 582-2100

Owl & Bat Prowl Oct 16, 7 p.m. 8 p.m.Tropical Pavilion Pinellas County Florida Botanical Gardens
Please call to pre-register by 10/15/04 by calling 582-2673 (Family Program; 30 People Maximum; $3 Fee)
Investigate the eerie sounds of an October night with Park Naturalist/Wildlife Biologist Jeanne Murphy! Come
investigate screech owl coos, bat clicks and other eerie sounds of the night. Kids, bring your parents too!

Certified Yard Tour Oct 23, 9 a.m. 3 p.m.
Learn what it takes to create and maintain an environmentally-friendly landscape from Certified Florida-friendly
Yards. Tours will be self-driven to homes in North Pinellas County (north of Ulmerton Road, S.R. 688)
Day-of-event registration is required to obtain addresses,directions, and descriptions of each site.
Cost is $5.00 for each package containing publications on Florida-friendly landscaping and the certification process.

Naples Nature Center, The Conservancy of Southwest Florida, Daily Presentations, Monday through Saturday,
Turtle Talk at 10 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. Florida Coast-to-Coast at 10:30 a.m., 12:30 and 2:30 p.m.
Guided Trail Walks at 11 a.m. & 2 p.m. Simply Shells at noon. Snakes Alive at 1 p.m. Phone: 239-262-0304

Monsters In The Marsh, Wed., Oct. 27, 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. Grassy Waters Preserve, Palm Beach.
Phone: 561-494-1047

Family Fun Fest, October 16th. 10 AM 2PM Kids 12 and under are FREE with an Adult admission of $5.00.
Bring the whole family for fun filled days of creative learning and exploration in the estuary! Rookery Bay
Environmental Learning Center located at 300 Tower Road, Naples. For more information call (239) 417-6310
Create art (baskets, fish prints, murals, leaf rubbings, drawings, sand casts, masks and more).

New Educational Material
Horsehoe Crab Brochure and Poster published in cooperation with David Griffis, Volusia County agent
and FMNP instructor, FMNP graduates and Marty Main, FMNP Program Leader.
Online at: http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/UW200

Wild Eye Watch &~ on:

Coreopsis, Coreopsis sp. 1-3'
Identifiers: found in a variety of colors from yellow to pink,
petals usually notched, dark center discs
Adaptations: abundant annual or perennials
Status: somewhat common throughout Florida i
Range: most of U.S.A. i
Habitat: wet to dry forests, and roadsides %
Fun Facts: |
- flower head provides food source for seed eating birds
- called "Tick seed" as seeds resemble small bugs
- genus name translated means "like a bug"

In 1991, the entire Coreopsis genus was designated as Florida's state wildlfower. Thirteen species of Coreopsis occur in
Florida, twelve of which are considered native. Coreopsis basalis is considered non-native. Coreopsis integrifolia is listed as a
state endangered species. These flowers are found in a variety of habitats and are used extensively in roadside
beautification programs.

Interpretive Tracks S d 4 ,1

Create Your Own Watershed, By FMNP Instructor Dolly Cummings

You can purchase generic watershed models that show how different land uses
affect water quality (http://www.enviroscapes.com), but you learn much more
by building your own model of your local watershed. Here's how we did our-
super-sized model (picture on right) of Camp Bayou, Ruskin, Florida.

You'll need a topo map of your watershed. Project this on a wall using either a ..
digital projector from a graphics file (you can customize a map at http://
www.mytopo.com/index.cfm), or using an overhead projector and a paper topo t
map. We traced the topo lines for 5, 15, 25 and 35 (maximum for area) onto
separate newsprint sheets from rolls donated by our local newspaper. We then
used these outlines as templates on 2" thick foam board insulation and cut
along the template outlines. This exaggerated the elevation (our landscape is
pretty flat), but was necessary to ensure the model land mass would drain to
the river. When all pieces were cut out, we stacked them, using the topo map as
a guide to make sure we were placing them correctly. We glued them into place
to make sure they didn't move. We then mixed sand-only redi-mix cement and
coated the layers to give it a smooth shape. When it dried, the cement was -
painted to match the colors on the topo map.

Now the hydrology of the area can be plainly demonstrated on our watershed. Camp Bayou's Super-sized watershed model
The effects of changes in land use, a critical issue in our area at this time, can Students; Herb Newlands, Laura Spacone, Russ
be shown using this model. It is also great for learning how to read a topo map. Watrous and .. : Bob Young participated.

Most of the funds to create this were obtained from "Welcome to your
Watershed" a community education grant project awarded through
SWFWMD.

Watershed lessons are at:
http://www.teachingtools.com/H20/Activity-Watershed.htm

"Watershed Excursion" has lots of activities to correlate to your model at:
http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/watershd/pdf/teachguide.pdf

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Current Course Offerings

Freshwater Wetlands Classes:
October 27- November 12 (Collier County)

Coastal Systems Classes:
November 5-December 17, (Palm Beach County)
March 17-April 21, 2005 (Volusia County)

Upland Habitats Classes:
February 23-March 18, 2005 (Collier County)

Go to www.MasterNaturalist.org
Click on "Course Offerings" for locations and time
schedules. After you have chosen your course,
follow the prompts to register online.

For program details: Click on "Information"

r -

FMNP Newsletter Staff

Editor: Dr. Martin Main
Managing Editor: Ginger Allen
Contributing Editor: Julie Carson
Web Coordinator: Buddy Walker

U UNIVERSITY OF

SFLORIDA

IFAS EXTENSION

C

FMNP Wetlands Module funding provided by:
-Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission,
Advisory Council on Environmental Education (ACEE)
-Southwest Florida Council for Environment Education,
Inc. (SWFCEE)

FMNP Coastal Module funding provided by:
-Florida Sea Grant, University of Florida, IFAS
-Florida Marine Research Institute,
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
-Hubbs-Sea World Research Institute

Florida Master Naturalist Program

Leader: Dr. Martin Main, Associate Professor
Coordinator: Ginger Allen, Senior Biological Scientist

Southwest Florida Research & Education Center
2686 State Road 29 North
Immokalee, FL 34142-9515
Phone: 239-658-3400; Fax: 239-658-3469
E-Mail: info@masternaturalist.org
Web: www.MasterNaturalist.org
www.MasterNaturalist.ifas.ufl.edu

Capturing Nature With a Camera
By Hurricane Herb, Freshwater Wetlands Naturalist

Herb Newlands is a lifelong resident of Tampa and was an avid
hunter. Now when he goes to hunting camp with his friends, he picks
up his camera instead of a rifle. He began capturing the morning light
through the live oaks, an old poacher's cabin, moss-covered rail
fences, reflections in dark sinkholes and all the "secrets" of the
woods. Taking a good photo became as important to Herb as
outsmarting a big-racked buck. Herb has these comments about
becoming an FMNP Wetlands Naturalist:
"The FMNP was a continuation of life long interests, but it has
helped me hone the skills of sharing all of the marvelous outdoors
with others in a way that they can relate to, whether they are
outdoorsmen or not. It has also inspired me to dig deeper for the
answers to all the questions that come to mind when I am exploring
the backwoods of Florida."
"I was also glad for the opportunity to share my attitude with
classmates on "being prepared" in the Florida wilderness. The
importance of carrying the right gear and knowing how to use it is
vital to an enjoyable, safe trip. Use good judgement and carry the
right gear, including items such as bug repellant, a first aid kit, and
even a length of string."
"I began as an amateur photographer in the 70s, I carry two 35 mm
Canon-AEl's. Photography as a medium of interpretation allows me to
share my experiences with friends and coworkers that may otherwise
never see what lies beyond their doorstep."

Pioneer cabin photo, by Herb
Newlands