Final_Project_Sci-230

UNESCO Research Paper on the Everglades National Park Daniel Cox Axia College University of Phoenix Joy Davis 1/16/2011 Everglades National Park One The Everglades National Park in the United States is the heritage landscape that I choose for my project for this class. The Everglades national park is as diverse in wild life as the cities that surround it, with a wide variety of animal and plant life. Why would anyone want to destroy or encroach on this territory, live it alone for the sake of the animals and plant life that call it home. The National Park Service currently recognizes nine distinct interdependent ecosystems within the park that constantly shift in size due to the amount of water present and other environmental factors. “Freshwater sloughs are perhaps the most common ecosystem associated with Everglades National Park. These are drainage channels that are characterized by a low-lying area that is covered in fresh water.”(Wikipedia 2011) Fresh water marls are like sloughs but lake the fast flowing water. Saw grass is a broad- leafed marsh plant, which is so prominent in the region that it gave the Everglades its nickname "River of Grass". This is an excellent feeding location for birds; sloughs in the Everglades attract a great variety of waders such as herons, egrets, roseate spoonbills, ibises and brown pelicans , as well as limpkins, snail kites that eat apple snails, which in turn feed on the saw grass which is what most of the everglades is made of. With the wide availability of fish, amphibians, and young birds, those attract a variety of freshwater turtles, alligators, water moccasins, and eastern diamondback rattlesnakes. Hammocks are often the only dry land within the park. They rise several inches above the grass-covered river, and are dominated by diverse plant life consisting of subtropical and tropical trees, such as large southern live oaks. Trees often form canopies under which animals thrive amongst scrub bushes of wild coffee, white indigo berry, poisonwood and saw palmetto. Everglades National Park Two The park features thousands of these tree islands amid sloughs—which often form the shape of a teardrop when seen from above because of the slowly moving water around them— but they can also be found in pineland and mangroves. Trees in the Everglades, including wild tamarind and gumbo-limbo rarely grow higher than 50 feet due to wind, cold weather, and lightning strikes. The plant growth around the hammock base is nearly impenetrable; however, beneath the canopy hammocks are an ideal habitat for animals. Reptiles (such as various species of snake and anole) and amphibians (such as the American green tree frog), find their homes in the hardwood hammocks. Birds such as barred owls, woodpeckers, northern cardinals, and southern bald eagles nest in hammock trees. Mammal species living in hardwood hammocks include opossums , raccoons , bobcats , Everglades mink , marsh rabbits , white-tailed deer , and the rare, life forms found around the everglades. Within the protected 20,000 acre Pine land there is a variety of animals that call this home; Woodpeckers, eastern meadowlarks, loggerhead shrikes , grackles, and northern mockingbirds, this are commonly found in the pinelands. Black bears and Florida panthers also live in this habitat. Within the Cypress and mangrove; tall cypress trees provide excellent nesting areas for birds including wild turkeys ,ibis, herons, egrets, anhingas, and belted kingfishers . Mammals within in cypress regions include white-tailed deer, squirrels, raccoons, opossums, skunks, swamp rabbits, river otters , and bobcats, as well as small rodents. There are many more species of birds and mammals that call the everglades their home. Considering that the everglades covers 1,509,000 acres throughout Dade, Broward, Monroe, and Collier counties in Florida. Everglades National Park Two The Everglades have been inhabited for over 10,000 years, perhaps even 20,000. By 4,000 years ago the area with its ample food supplies-fish, shellfish, plants, and land animals--supported a substantial population. Europeans first appeared in 1513 when Ponce de Leon explored portions of the Florida peninsula. When the Spanish arrived in the 1500's, two primary groups of Indians, the Calusas and the Tequestas--lived in the area. The Indian population was largely eliminated by the diseases introduced by the Spanish explorers, such as tuberculosis, influenza, and polio. After the initial Spanish attempts at conquest, the south Florida area returned to isolation for 300 years. After 1700, Indians of the Creek Confederacy from Georgia and other areas north of Florida migrated into the areas vacated by the extermination of the previous inhabitants. These Indians came to be known as Seminoles, but they were largely eliminated and eventually moved as a result of the Seminole Wars which followed the acquisition of Florida by the United States in 1821. (Holleran, Patrick, Shannon Technologies, 1994-2011) Whites begin to settle the coastal areas of the present park in the 1880's and 1890's. Pioneers supported themselves with a combination of farming, fishing, hunting, and hunting of birds for their plumage. Fast forward a couple of years, in 1882 the region begin to be drained for agricultural or residential use. In the 20th century the natural water flow from Lake Okeechobee was controlled and diverted to the South Florida metropolitan area. The Everglades National Park was established in 1934 to protect the quickly vanishing Everglades and officially dedicated in 1947, the same year massive canal-building projects across South Florida began to divert water away Everglades National Park Three from the park. Because of human activity, the ecosystems in Everglades National Park has suffered significantly. The repair and restoration of the Everglades is a politically charged issue in South Florida. The following words have become all too common in our vocabulary; threatened, endangered and extinct. Because of man's desire for land and raw materials, his continued pollution and indiscriminate hunting many plant and wildlife species are on the brink of extinction. Drainage of wetlands, alteration of overland water flow and hunting have all contributed to species decline. The Everglades, was once known for its abundant bird life, this wading bird population has seen a drastic decline since the turn of the century. The Florida Panther once common throughout the state today is on the verge of extinction. Within the four National Park areas of Everglades National Park, Biscayne National Park, Big Cypress National Preserve and Fort Jefferson National Monument there are 16 endangered and 6 threatened wildlife species. Maintaining harmony between "20th century progress" and wilderness areas requires research, legislation and public awareness. For the last decade the South Florida Research Center, Everglades National Park, has been studying how changes occurring outside the parks influence the fragile areas within their boundaries. Research going on today may lead to a brighter future for many species. (Uhler, John William 2007) The Endangered Species Act of 1973 has provided two classifications for wildlife; "endangered" or “threatened," and mandated legal protection for species listed under these classifications. In justification for such protection, the Act also recognized that the various Everglades National Park Four species of fish, wildlife and plants have aesthetic, educational, historical and scientific value. On December 13, 1989 President George H.W. Bush signed the Everglades National Park Protection Expansion Act. This added 109,506 acres to the eastern side of the park, it closed the park to air boats, and it directed the Department of the Army to restore water to improve the ecosystems within the Everglades National Park. The ENPPEA (Everglades National Park Protection Expansion Act) directed the Secretary of the Interior to manage the Park in order to maintain the natural abundance, diversity, and ecological integrity of native plants and animals, as well as the behavior of native animals, as part of their ecosystem. Even though President Bush as quoted "Through this legislation that river of grass may now be restored to its natural flow of water" while signing the act. However in 1993 the park was placed on the List of World Heritage Sites in danger. (Wikimedia Foundation, 2011) The Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP), approved by Congress in 2000, was a federal effort to restore the Everglades charged with the objectives of restoration, preservation and protection of the south Florida ecosystem while providing for other water- related needs of the region. Claiming to be the largest environmental restoration in history, it was a controversial plan. People worried that was relying on uncertain technologies, that it overlooked water quality, subsidizes damaging growth and delays its environmental benefits. Supporters of the plan included the National Audubon Society, who was accused by Friends of the Everglades and the Biodiversity Legal Foundation of prioritizing agricultural and business interests. Everglades National Park Five Public support is so vital for species preservation. You might ask what you can do to help. Become informed on the status of plants and wildlife in your state. Do not purchase any products that you suspect come from endangered or threatened plant or wildlife species. Report people who deal in endangered or threatened plants and wildlife species to the proper authorities. Support conservation legislation. It is not enough to merely appreciate nature anymore we have to actively work to protect it for future generations. What we do today will determine the legacy we leave our children and their children. The extinction of a species is forever ... and the decision to act now is ours. I propose heavier fins and stiffer legislation for those who are caught in the act of selling or taking possession of endangered or threatened plant and wildlife species. For those caught breaking legislation like the Endangered Species act of 1973 should lose everything they have just like the wildlife and plant life that they feel needs to move for the sake of progress. If the intrusion goes unchecked we will see the utter destruction of some of the United States most endangered species from the American crocodile which were overhunted for their hides, the Florida panther due to habitat destruction from human development, vehicle collisions, inbreeding due to a limited gene pool, parasites, diseases, and mercury poisoning, four species of sea turtles including the Atlantic green, Atlantic hawksbill, Atlantic loggerhead, and the Atlantic ridley are endangered, and the leatherback sea turtle is threatened. Habitat loss and illegal poaching and destructive fishing practices are the biggest threats to these animals. These and many more animals will no longer be around for our future generations to look at and learn about. Unless a drastic change is implemented I see a future where my grandchildren ask why Everglades National Park Six these animals are no longer here and all I can say is that we as a species needed more space and they were in the way. This is not how I want this world to turn out, I want to look back and say that we made a difference and turned the tides back to help mother nature reclaim her land. References Uhler, John William (2007) Everglades National Park information page. Retrieved January 16, 2011, from http://www.everglades.national-park.com/info.htm Holleran, Patrick, Shannon Technologies, (1994-2011) Everglades National Park, Park Vision, Retrieved January 16, 2011, from http://www.shannontech.com/ParkVision/Everglades/Everglades.html Wikimedia Foundation, (2011) Everglades National Park, Retrieved January 16, 2011, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Everglades_National_Park