1Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary Magazine

2019

A Habitat in

NatureNeeds People,

Harmony

PEOPLENEEDNATURE

2 3Corkscrew.Audubon.org Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary Magazine

To protect the natural resources of Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, its surrounding watershed, and the Western Everglades and to

for the benefit of birds, other wildlife, and people through land management, science, education, restoration, and public policy advocacy.

hether it’s your first visit or your 50th, you can’t help but smile as you head off to a boardwalk adventure at Audubon’s Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary.

From flatwoods to wet prairie to cypress forest to marsh and back again, each visit brings new discoveries both natural and historical, from raucous

Red-Shouldered Hawks defending their territories to the Plume Hunters’ Camp where Audubon wardens risked their lives to protect Corkscrew’s wading birds from poachers. Ancient bald cypress trees tower overhead festooned with ferns and air plants, and visited by tiny jewel-toned warblers flitting from limb to limb in search of a meal.

One of these towering elders, the Hemenway cypress, has stood sentinel over Corkscrew’s lettuce lake for nearly 600 years. And while you marvel at its majesty, it’s also humbling to consider the wisdom and fortitude of those who saved it from the axe.

This ancient forest is a place of wildness and solitude, reverence and gratitude.

Today, the threats to this special place are less obvious than an axe, but just as formidable. Wendell Berry famously adapted the Golden Rule to watersheds saying, “Do unto those downstream as you would have those upstream do unto you.”

The water flowing through Corkscrew – sustaining the cypress, Wood Storks, alligators and more – is the legacy of decisions already made upstream. And in another month the water that today courses through this sanctuary will spill out into Naples Bay, Estero Bay, or Wiggins Pass, connecting this wetland to the Gulf of Mexico.

Not only is Corkscrew a sanctuary, it is a living laboratory where we are studying this changing watershed and pioneering restoration strategies to save it.

Will the nests of egrets, herons and Wood Storks, the birds our wardens sought to protect, still adorn the Hemenway canopy 600 years from now? Will families from Ohio, New York and Germany still stroll our boardwalk? If they do, it will be because we have chosen to appreciate, value, understand, and protect Corkscrew and the complex ecosystem upon which it depends. It will be because we committed to educate the next generation to do the same.

Step onto the boardwalk, and find your own Corkscrew adventure.

Wendell Berry famously adapted the Golden Rule to watersheds saying, “Do unto those downstream as you would have those upstream do unto you.”

FROM AUDUBON FLORIDAWELCOME

Connect & Commit

Mission

Join Us:

Julie WraithmellExecutive Director, Audubon Florida

W

influence Everglades restorationWest McCann, Chair

Steve Nellis, Vice Chair

Joseph T. Ambrozy

Preston Came

Ed Carlson

Deb Carrier

Mike Duever

John Elting

John Graham

Lois Kelley

Tom Maish

Christian Spilker

Sharon Stilwell

SustainabilityBoard of Directors

Contributing Photographers:

TO CORKSCREW

Ralph Arwood, Niki Butcher, Dennis Goodman, Brian Hampton, John Paul Howard, Jason Lauritsen, Debbie Lotter, Steve Rannels, Sally Stein, Mac Stone, Waddy Thompson, Allyson Webb, and R.J. Wiley.

Cover Image by R.J. Wiley.

Audubon’sCorkscrew Swamp Sanctuary

Managing editors: Beth Preddy, Tabitha StadlerArt direction: Tim Kling Graphic Design

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CORKSCREW

the Treasures of

Old-Growth Bald Cypress Forest is Unique in the Worldby ED CARLSON

Director Emeritus, Audubon’s Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary

CelebratingAudubon-protected nature site for more than 100 years

Established as Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in 1954

13,000 acres of pristine wilderness in the Western Everglades

World’s largest old-growth Bald Cypress forest, with trees more than 600 years old

Internationally-acclaimed Ramsar Wetland and Important Birding Area

Gateway to the Great Florida Birding and Wildlife Trail

Audubon science and research center

2.25-mile nature boardwalk with 100,000 visitors annually

Nature Store with fair trade and artisan items

Gallery Café

Discovery Center with children and family learning opportunities

Boardwalk tours and special visitor events offered year-round

“Friends of Corkscrew” membership program

AUDUBON’SCORKSCREW SWAMP SANCTUARY

6 7Corkscrew.Audubon.org Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary Magazine

eople love mysteries and there is no greater mystery in this world than its natural

wonders. Lofty mountain ranges, raging waterfalls and old growth forests did not have essential survival values for our species and, in fact, were mostly impediments.

So why do these places leave us speechless and inspire us so much? We are awed by the grandeur and power of the forces of nature that created them and us. They remind us that we are part of something much greater no matter how hard we try to hide in our cities, suburbs and theme parks.

While there are many mountain ranges, forests and other wonders to inspire us throughout the world, there is only one place on the planet with the natural gifts of the Bald Cypress forest of Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary.

Globally positioned where the tropic and temperate come together to mingle, the total biological diversity of Corkscrew has yet to be determined although many experts have been working hard on it for a long time.

Bald Cypress forests have a relatively limited global range, confined mostly to the Southeastern U.S. An ancient species of tree common during the age of dinosaurs, they become ancient themselves by living more than one thousand years. These old behemoths tower into the sky with trunks greater than three curious humans can reach around. Their massive, spreading canopies, atop clear, branchless trunks, create one of the world’s greatest cathedrals. The ceilings are lavishly decorated with orchids, ferns and air plants.

But, what makes this primeval forest

mysterious and spectacular beyond belief is the dark, calm primordial swamp in which it is bathing.

This is the magic potion that releases an explosion of life in Corkscrew Swamp.

You will not see it unless you watch the herons and egrets very closely while they sample the swarms of shrimp, crayfish, snails and fish from the black water. Frogs reveal themselves with raucous calls that can be deafening after a rainstorm. Otters never seem to rest in pursuit for their prey. Alligators watch them closely but rarely waste their energy trying to catch one. When you see one of these half-ton monsters

cruising through the swamp you realize that these are dinosaurs living in their ancient home just as they have for hundreds of millions of years. There are dinosaurs in the cathedral!

What a timeless, mysterious, inspiring place to see our reflection.

Visitors wonder how all these trees, plants and creatures thrive and grow in such a beautiful place without human intervention. Who takes care of and manages all of this? The simple answer is that nature is in control and the key is water. As long as the rain falls and flows through the swamp as it always has, the natural system will manage itself.

Preserving Corkscrew has never been easy. It certainly was not easy for Audubon warden Rhett Green to travel there on horseback from 1912 to 1917, set up camp, load his

P

While no one feeds the wildlife, Corkscrew Swamp would not exist today without a century of protection by very dedicated

rifle and risk his life protecting the nesting herons and egrets from plume hunters. Nor was it easy or simple to organize a national campaign to save the cypress forest from the loggers in March 1954, when logging proceeded until a sufficient down payment was raised for purchase nine months later.

The challenges facing Corkscrew today are just as daunting if not more so.

A recent analysis has shown that while rainfall has not changed in the region, surface and ground water levels have changed significantly. The surface waters are dropping sooner in the dry season, and the ground water levels are going lower.

The lifeblood of the swamp is being drained away. This change not only threatens the health and productivity of plant communities and wildlife populations, it increases the risk of catastrophic wildfires.

If the cathedral forest at Corkscrew burns, there is no other to replace it.

This is likely the result of an influx of new residents and industrial agriculture to Southwest Florida. The pattern of draining freshwater wetlands to make room for residential and agricultural development, sending the drainage to the sea, and then extracting the remaining water resources for everyone’s water supply, will eventually take its toll.

People.Join the effort to protect water for wildlife.Corkscrew.Audubon.org

The challenges facing Corkscrew Sanctuary today are just as daunting if not more so, as the lifeblood of the swamp is being drained away.

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alk into timelessness, when human life and nature enjoyed a special relationship, surrounded by some of the oldest living trees on earth and descendants of Jurassic wildlife. It is an experience available to all of us living and visiting near the manicured beaches of Southwest Florida.

The Corkscrew experience begins at Blair Audubon Center, where exhibits, a nature store, discovery center, and gallery cafe invite learning, relaxation and enjoyment. From the Center, the 2.25 mile boardwalk meanders through pine flatwoods, an open prairie, a strand of pond cypress, and finally into the ancient bald cypress forest, where hundreds of impressive giants tower more than 100 feet into the sky.

The serene experience is the cure for what is often called “nature deficit disorder.”

VISITOR EXPERIENCE

CONNECT

WNATURE

meanders through pine flatwoods, an open prairie, a strand of pond cypress, and finally into the ancient bald cypress forest, where hundreds of impressive giants tower more than 100 feet into the sky.

The 2.25 mile boardwalk

to

Deep within the forest, stop by the wide “lettuce lakes,” watery clearings that are favorite feeding grounds for wading birds and alligators. Pause at shelters and

benches to view the theatric masterpiece of a forest at play.

See the forestthrough the trees.

Linger and admire each tree’s unique beauty, its silhouette adorned with vines, bromeliads or orchids, its boughs cradling hummingbird nests or a heron’s heap of twigs. Notice the arc of branches where hawks perch and migratory warblers rest after flights along the Atlantic flyway. Marvel at the massive trunk punctuated by cavities where owls, raccoons and the occasional bear burrow. Learn about the tree’s natural history and timeworn character over centuries of mild weather punctuated by occasional hurricanes. Imagine the tree growing in stately slow motion before Europeans settled on the North American continent, and wonder that the tree remains, a monument in one of America’s last great wildernesses.

Rebuilding an icon – it took heart and dedication for staff and volunteers

to rebuild portions of our boardwalk damaged by Hurricane Irma in 2017.

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Modern day people need nature to thriveThe second misconception about managing Corkscrew Swamp

Sanctuary is that we muck around all day with plants and animals, working outdoors in the sunshine and never seeing another human being. It’s exactly the opposite (although we do enjoy that part) because the majority of our work is focused on the management of people. This endeavor requires that we engage, educate and inspire diverse individuals and groups in many different ways.

In the community, we work with elected officials and the private sector to find compromises that minimize impacts to our shared resources, such as water. And we coordinate with other scientific, academic and land management organizations to share innovative restoration practices, such as the work we’re doing to remove Carolina Willow.

At Corkscrew, our tours, events and workshops give visitors meaningful experiences in nature. They enjoy guided tours about birds and the ancient forest, embrace wellness during swamp meditation classes, learn from experts about scientific topics in our classroom, visit the forest at night in our After Hours programs, and get off the boardwalk and knee deep in water on a full-day swamp walk.

It’s exciting to see a citified adult climb back onto the boardwalk after their first swamp walk, with a swagger in their step and a twinkle in their eye. Studies demonstrate the importance of getting outdoors because it decreases stress levels and improves overall wellness and fitness, which is so necessary in today’s world.

here are common misperceptions about what we do to manage a national natural treasure such as Audubon’s Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary.

The first is that nature can be left alone and will thrive independently of human management. There was a time in history when that was true, when people, and our homes and infrastructure, weren’t so dominant on the landscape. In the modern day, the offsite influences on a natural area – such as non-native invasive species, pollution from various sources, and large-scale landscape-level changes that affect water flows and more – require Corkscrew’s staff to take an active hand in managing the land. Key examples include:

We manage nature in a way that mimics its

historic and natural state so that we can

understand it and

a small piece for

Managing Nature

preserveposterity.

PRESCRIBED BURNS: We conduct prescribed burns, which are controlled and choreographed efforts at mimicking the natural effects that a lightning strike, followed by a wildfire, would have on our pine flatwoods and prairies.

NON-NATIVE PLANT REMOVAL: We remove invasive non-native plants that were introduced by accident to our region and have few local predators to keep them in check so they do not crowd out the native species.

MONITORING: We monitor the Sanctuary’s health, such as the water levels, mammal species, and the nesting success of Wood Storks which are an indicator species whose health is a proxy for the health of the entire ecosystem.

T

Modern day nature needs people to manage itby Tabitha Stadler

Assistant Sanctuary Director

RJ RILEY

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SCIENCE AND LAND MANAGEMENT

The Orchid and the Mothorkscrew Swamp Sanctuary’s “Super” Ghost Orchid has enjoyed

celebrity status ever since its discovery on July 7, 2007 by a visitor searching for owls. By any measure, 2018 was a banner year for the Ghost Orchid.

For starters, it bloomed for 85 consecutive days, from July through September. During that prolific flowering period, it had a total of at least 19 blooms, sporting as many as nine flowers at one time. Most Ghost Orchids produce only a few blooms at any given time and Corkscrew’s

is dubbed “Super” because of the numerous blooms it regularly produces.

The profusion of flowers make it a beautiful sight, but this past year the “Super” Ghost Orchid made front-page news. The article chronicled conservation photographer Mac Stone’s effort to photograph a Giant Sphinx Moth pollinating the Ghost Orchid. Scientists have long believed that only the Giant Sphinx Moth can pollinate a Ghost Orchid but that has never been documented. This is because of the moth’s long proboscis, which is a tubular mouth

C

covey of Northern Bobwhite Quail scurries into the protection of a patch of Saw

Palmetto in the predawn light. They had been foraging in the diverse understory of a pine flatwoods that just six months before had prescribed fire run through it. In the distance, Sandhill Cranes glide into a wet prairie, landing gracefully. An abundance of aquatic prey in the area makes feeding easy for the birds.

Wildlife do not recognize boundaries; they go where the habitat is right for them. Just like humans, they need good quality shelter, food and water.

At Corkscrew, we have a land management team that addresses threats to the habitat that put wildlife and the watershed at risk.

Success Story: Carolina WillowCorkscrew’s team uses a three-

pronged approach – mechanical, herbicidal, and prescribed fire – to tackle invasive Carolina Willow. The result is that we now see Sawgrass, Smooth Cordgrass, and abundant other plants thriving for the benefit of wildlife and the entire system.

Land managed through the use of mechanical and herbicidal treatments combined with appropriately- timed prescribed fire is of benefit to everyone, but there is often not enough funding to provide for all, or even any, of these activities.

The Science Behind the Scenes –60-years of water level data

A Banner Year for the Ghost Orchid

A

that can exceed 10 inches in length.Mac Stone and Peter Houlihan, an

expert on Ghost Orchids and a National Geographic Explorer, climbed the ancient Bald Cypress tree on which the orchid sits and positioned a camera in hopes of capturing the never-before-seen image of the nocturnal pollination. The results of this effort have yet to be seen, but the search for scientific answers is an important part of the Sanctuary’s mission.

When in bloom, you can monitor the Ghost Orchid’s status every day on the Sanctuary’s website and daily posts also appear on our social media channels.

HarmonyA Habitat in

Our proven method for removing invasive Carolina Willow, a thirsty plant that pulls

water out of the system, is how we are restoring our marsh and prairies. The goal is 1,000 acres restored by 2020, at a total cost of $2 million. Significant support for this has already been received from the

Rathmann Family Foundation, Coca-Cola and SeaWorld. With your added support, we will restore and preserve our wetlands and support a host of species including Wood Storks and Roseate Spoonbills.

restore 200 acres of marsh this year!

Med

ian

Daily

Fee

t Ab

ove

Sea

Leve

l

Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun

4.6

4.8

5.0

5.2

5.4

5.61960-1999

2000-2015

Analysis of 60 years of water level data, gathered daily at the Sanctuary since the 1950s, shows significant drops in water table levels in recent decades. Since 2000, we’re seeing our swamp get much drier in the dry season (December-May), and low water levels last longer than they did historically. The abrupt departure from historic water level patterns is due to human activities, most likely a combination of too much ground water extraction for agriculture and residential use, regional drainage to prevent wet season flooding of farms and homes, and habitat changes due to widespread suppression of fire in our fire-dependent ecosystem. This unnatural dry down alters wildlife habitat, increases risks of devastating wildfires, and diminishes our supply of fresh water for drinking, agriculture and recreation. Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary is advocating for additional research, improvements in water management, reductions of wetland losses, and increased water conservation.

HELP US

Peter Houlihan climbed the ancient Bald Cypress tree on which the “Super” Ghost Orchid grows.

Donate atCorkscrew.Audubon.org/MarshandPrairie

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Jack WheelerJack Wheeler was among nine nominees in the volunteer

category for the Collier County Tourism Star Awards, which included 12 different categories overall. Wheeler finished first in a strong field that included volunteer nominations from the Naples Zoo, TheatreZone, the Marco Island Chamber of Commerce, the Hilton Naples, and the Golisano Children’s Museum.

Jack has been a volunteer at Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary for 25 years and has more than 11,000 hours of service. In addition to being a Boardwalk Naturalist, Jack and his wife Thelma visit the boardwalk every morning to clear it of fallen branches and pine and cypress needles. Jack also led the team of volunteers who repaired the boardwalk after Hurricane Irma.

Jean McCollomIn presenting Jean McCollom’s award at the annual Audubon

Assembly, Sanctuary leadership lauded her for making “a substantial difference at Corkscrew and throughout the state this past year in championing restoration, science and land management priorities.”

McCollom’s current volunteer service at Corkscrew includes helping with prescribed burns, treating invasive exotic plants, and monitoring the removal of Carolina Willow.

McCollom and botanist George Wilder have conducted a two-year inventory of the jaw-dropping diversity of plant life at the Sanctuary, documenting 753 species, nearly 200 more than previously known, including five previously considered historical and 27 that are critically endangered.

McCollom has deep roots with Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary. She came to Florida as an intern at Corkscrew in 1981 and has been working in the area as a biologist ever since.

Audubon’s Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary has never been shy in proclaiming its volunteers as the best. In 2018, two major honors reaffirmed that bold claim.

Jack Wheeler was recognized August 30, 2018 at the Paradise Coast Tourism Star Awards as the Collier County Tourism Volunteer of the Year.

Jean McCollom was honored October 19, 2018 at the Audubon Assembly as the Audubon Florida Volunteer of the Year.

ADVOCACYVOLUNTEER AWARDS

Key to CorkscrewCrises

Audubon’s Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary announces its annual Volunteer Awards, presented on March 15, 2018 for outstanding contributions to the ongoing mission of our non-profit organization.

CATEGORY WINNERLand Management: Ralph ArwoodResearch: Courtney KernFacilities: Tom WilsonVisitor Center: Susan Schumann-SkehanYouth Programs: Catherine JohnsonPublic Programs: Leslie BurgessBoardwalk Naturalists: Amy SwansonSpecial Service: Jack Wheeler

Annual Volunteer Award Winners

ver a hundred years ago, the people who founded modern Audubon saw the

slaughter of more than 90% of the 2.5 million beautiful plume wading birds. Connections were made between ways to stop this wanton destruction and the seats of power, ascending all the way to Congress and President Teddy Roosevelt. That crusade, as we know, was successful and made possible Audubon wardens at Corkscrew Swamp.

Now, as Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary turns 65, we see that the Wood Storks and wading birds have yet to recover in the Everglades due to another ecological scourge – loss of wetlands and habitat. Those impacts are amplified by the accelerating effects of climate destabilization and warming.

Corkscrew scientists have clearly documented the connection between the destruction of wetlands, and severe flooding, toxic algae blooms year-round, unnatural wildfire threats and costs, and reduction of water supply.

Natural

Connections

WINNERS

O

CLARENCE “LARRY” FRENCHJanuary 8, 1933 – November 24, 2018Joined as a volunteer in February 2002

WILLIAM E. PEASEApril 9, 1927 – May 25, 2018Joined as a volunteer in January 2003

WESLYN STRICKLANDMarch 12, 1934 – December 21, 2018Joined as a volunteer in January 1997

2018 Volunteer Memoriam

Honoree Jack Wheeler, right, shakes hands with Jack Wert, director of Collier’s tourism bureau, at the Tourism Star Awards; Jean McCollom below.

by Brad CornellSouthwest Florida Policy Associate

Audubon of the WesternEverglades/Audubon Florida

Corkscrew manager Hank Bennett explores the lettuce lakes circa 1950s.

These issues are at the heart of Audubon’s modern advocacy program to double wading bird populations to 200,000. Audubon’s solutions for these birds are solutions for all of us: protect and restore wetlands, fund Florida Forever and Everglades restoration, and build resilient human communities not in conflict with floods and fire.

WORKINGTOGETHEROur robust advocacy program includes working with elected officials to understand complex scientific information. We gather data and make it useable and practical for those on the front lines of brokering effective policies to protect natural resources. Audubon understands that we are part of the impact that people are having on the

natural world. Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary works with people at every level of government, in the private sector including developers and landowners, and with individuals and groups, to integrate win-win solutions that are pro-environment and pro-people.

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e are incredibly grateful for the long-standing partnership between Collier County Public Schools (CCPS) and Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary. Each year, approximately

1,700 children take part in field experiences that bring the classroom to life. Our teachers provide the foundation of content and the Sanctuary immerses students in learning on the Insect Adventures and Wild Florida Adventures field trips. The second and fifth graders are so excited to make observations, record data and truly be scientists! All of this is possible at no cost to the District, and is for some students, one of their first opportunities to see nature outside of the classroom, which is truly memorable. Children then share their learning with parents and families... strengthening our community’s commitment to the environment and natural beauty of Florida.

Volunteers and Corkscrew staff are incredible partners in supporting these endeavors that are truly “game changers” for students. We know that experiences in science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM) are engaging and can often lead students to new pathways and studies. By being in the field taking part in experiences aligned to state standards, we are making an impact together. On behalf of the District, incredible thanks to Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, you are truly part of our CCPS Family!

YOUTH EDUCATION

By Dr. Kamela PattonSuperintendent of Collier County Public Schools

ED-VENTURESExcellent

W

W

orkscrew Swamp Sanctuary shares nature with children through our partnership with the

Collier County Public Schools, Florida Gulf Coast University and many other organizations that work with young people throughout the community. These programs are all hands on, interactive, outdoor learning experiences that make kids smile. They see wild animals, dip net to catch fish and other critters, and even act like birds to understand how their beaks are uniquely adapted to catch their preferred foods.

MORE GREEN,LESS SCREEN

Children share their learning with parents and families,

strengthening our community’s commitment to

the environment.

or more than 20 years, Audubon’s Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary has partnered with Collier County Public Schools on the Field Trip Specialist program, which is a countywide coordinated effort to

provide outdoor environmental education experiences for elementary and middle school students. Corkscrew’s curriculum contributions last year included Wild Florida Adventure for 825 fifth graders and Insect Adventure for 650 second graders.

F

Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary has a robust internship program, Audubon Wings, where we employ recent

graduates so they can develop workplace skills and knowledge. The program helps build the next generation of professionals engaged in studying, protecting and advocating for our environment. All of these young people will carry on our legacy.

CConservation Colleagues

We are proud to be among the leading environmental educators participating in the Field

Trip Specialist Program, including:

BIG CYPRESS NATIONAL PRESERVECONSERVANCY OF SOUTHWEST FLORIDA

C.R.E.W. LAND AND WATER TRUSTNAPLES BOTANICAL GARDEN

NAPLES ZOOROOKERY BAY NATIONAL

ESTUARINE RESEARCH RESERVEFLORIDA GULF COAST UNIVERSITY’S

WINGS OF HOPEFormer Intern Kelsie Buxbaum

Teaching NATURE Earning their WINGS

“Best advice for a future intern: Come ready to learn. There are so many wonderful people here ready to share what they know – try to take it all in,”says former intern Kelsie Buxbaum.

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Preston and Cherie CameDesai Family FundEllin Goetz and Mike WatkinsGracey Luckett Bradley TrustThe Green Heron FundSandy and Mike HollenhorstIBM Matching GiftsGerry and Darryl ManningMeredith CorporationPanther Island Mitigation BankPenniman Family FoundationWes and Yvette PowellRohovsky Family FoundationFrederick S. Upton Foundation

$1,000 – $2,499 Lew & Dawn Allyn Family Fund Mrs. Ralph W. Arwood, Jr.Shahida and Syed AsadLeona BoldtPaul and Linda BurnhamJohn and Glenda Burkhart Timothy G. CarrollCerda, Llanos y Cia, Inc.Columbus FoundationCommunity Foundation of Collier CountyThe Corwith FundDerek and Helen DayWarren and Leslie DurlingCynthia and Elliott EricksonThe Evelo Family FundJoan DunnAlice and Dean FjelstulCandace ForsythCharles and Jane GaillardNancy GillisDave and Patty McNicholasSharon Grider and Jeff Millar FoundationDale Kammerlohr Walter G. and Barbara KorntheuerKenneth and Ellie KrierRoger and Carol LafontaineMark and Barb LangenhamWest and Julie McCannPat and Larry MinthornPhilip and Gale MorganWhitney Neufeld–KaiserPatricia Palmer John and Maggie PicottePresstige PrintingReese Family Charitable FoundationJim Rathmann & Anne NoonanDianne and Mike ShanleySusan Schumann-SkehanDeborah ShultzTom and Mary Anne SpannThe Other Stratton FoundationChris and Mary Jane WurthJohn and Maureen WurtzMary Ida and Carl D. Yost

CONSERVATION PARTNERSNaples Trust CompanyPanther Island Mitigation Bank

came to Miami from Connecticut in the mid-1960s for graduate work in biology

at the University of Miami. As a young biologist, I relished exploring the unfamiliar natural areas of Southeast Florida. To my surprise, I found that I had a passion for cypress swamps and spent a lot of time getting to know Everglades National Park and, especially, Big Cypress National Preserve.

During the 1970s, school and career allowed me less opportunity to get out to enjoy the environment, but sometime in the mid-80s I woke up and began rediscovering the world around me. Moving westward, there was Fakahatchee Strand, then northward, Picayune State Forest, and then a little further north, Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary.

Seeing Corkscrew for the first time, I recall being stunned by the extraordinary beauty and vitality of the place - a condition from which I have never recovered.

As a frequent visitor in the years that followed, I was inspired by the long-term vision for Corkscrew by its director at the time, Ed Carlson, and his team. I was also introduced to the education program that Corkscrew was developing for the area’s schools and became a dedicated supporter of this important effort.

YOUTHANK

Looking to the future, it is vital that we continue to introduce our young people to the beauty and diversity of places like Corkscrew and educate them about the importance of maintaining and protecting these unique natural resources for them to enjoy and for future generations.

Over the last four decades, I have enjoyed watching the evolution of Corkscrew and being a small part of its maturation into a major environmental and educational resource.

To me, the word “sanctuary” implies not only refuge, which Corkscrew certainly provides for the animals and plants that comprise our environment, but also the spiritual renewal that we can experience and benefit from by being there. Opportunities like this are becoming increasingly rare in our time and one that I strongly believe is well worth our continued support.

I

By Allyn GolubCo-Founder, Corkscrew Cypress Council

DonorCONNECTIONS

The Corkscrew Cypress Council is an exclusive group of supporters who are the heartwood of Corkscrew’s magnificent forest, and the force for the conservation, science, education, and advocacy needed to preserve Corkscrew’s grounds and the surrounding Western Everglades. Council Members partner with Corkscrew to protect and restore habitat at the 13,000 – acre Sanctuary and to educate the public about the importance of conservation in Florida. They lead the way to ensure that a sustainable, diverse and healthy ecosystem is passed on to future generations.

Like the conservation pioneers of 1954 who saved Corkscrew’s forest from the axe, the Corkscrew Cypress Council demonstrates to the community and the world how a small, committed group of people can make a lasting difference.

Join the Cypress Council by contacting Julie McCann at JMcCann@Audubon.org.

FIVE-YEAR GIVING LEVELSLandmark Cypress – $100,000 $20,000 annuallyBlack Cypress – $50,000 $10,000 annuallyBald Cypress – $25,000 $5,000 annuallyWhite Cypress – $12,500 $2,500 annually

Building andPreservingA LEGACY

$100,000 AND ABOVEBlair FoundationM. Louise Cason, MD TrustSeaWorld and Busch Gardens Conservation Fund in partnership with the Coca-Cola Foundation

$50,000 – $99,999Derick and Sally DriemeyerFlorida Power & LightRathmann Family Foundation

$20,000 – $49,999The Batchelor FoundationJohn C. Bock FoundationClose Friend FoundationVincent J. Coates FoundationFreed Foundation, Inc.Allyn L. Golub, PhDAnna and Marvin Hamburg RemembranceJohn Paul HowardBrian and Heidi MillerStephen & Merrilee NellisJohn and Virginia RigsbyThe Robinson Foundation David S. Upton Memorial

$10,000 – $19,999Joseph T. AmbrozyMr. and Mrs. ArwoodAudubon of the Western EvergladesDr. Richard H. Bailey Memorial In Honor of Rob Berkley FundJack and Kristina BoykinJohn and Nancy EltingDennis and Linda FinniganWilliam and Lois KelleyKnopf Family FoundationAnthony and Judy LicataTom and Judith MaishMary Jane and Frank SemcerAnne D. and Eddie Thomas

$5,000 – $9,999Charles and Molly Becker TrustDeb Carrier and Harry GainesJohn and Georgia DallePezze Judith EwingBrian and Donna HamptonHawley Family FoundationJohn R. and Ann L. Helmsderfer Memorial FundElizabeth HinesJinny and John JohnsonKate and Al LuziusMary and Christopher RayburnRitchie Foundation/ MALLRD FoundationMary Jane and Frank SemcerDick and Sharon StilwellJack W. Thompson TrustDennis and Dee TurnerWelchwood Foundation William and Virginia Young

$2,500 – $4,999Arthrex, Inc.William Blodgett, Jr.Big Cypress National Society of Daughters of the Revolution

WITH SPECIAL GRATITUDE FOR THE MANY LEGACY GIFTS THAT SUPPORT OUR MISSION.

20 Corkscrew.Audubon.org

375 Sanctuary Road | Naples, Florida 34120

239-348-9151 • Corkscrew.Audubon.orgLocated 15 miles east of I-75, exit 111

Join Uson the Boardwalk

NON-PROFIT ORGUS POSTAGE

PAIDFT MYERS, FLPERMIT #215

***ECRWSSEDDM***RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMER

NATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY

OPEN DAILY 7 A.M. - 5:30 P.M.Last boardwalk admission is at 4:30 p.m.

ADMISSIONSEntrance fees cover two consecutive days of admission.

$14 per adult. $6 for college students with ID.$4 for children six to 18 years old.

Children under six are free.$10 for National Audubon Society members with card.

HANDICAP ACCESSIBLE