News
Are invasive iguanas coming to Tampa Bay?
2+ hour, 6+ min ago (919+ words) At first, you could only find them in Miami.Now, they scamper across Pinellas County park roads, delighting " or sometimes spooking " tourists. They swim in retention ponds beside Palm Harbor hospice centers, hide in backyard brambles behind Seminole Heights homes…...
Manta ray capture spurs a Florida bill to outlaw capturing endangered marine life
5+ day, 7+ hour ago (289+ words) Animal rights activists were outraged last summer when a video of a fishing boat off the Panhandle hauling aboard an exhausted manta ray went viral. The endangered species was then sent to a SeaWorld half a world away, in Abu…...
Protecting endangered wildlife, a literary legacy, sculpture culture, surviving in sync
1+ week, 3+ day ago (375+ words) "Florida Matters Live & Local" guest host Cathy Carter dives into topics that highlight the challenges and the creativity that define our state. From endangered animals and living legends of literature to monumental public art and feats of human resilience, there's…...
Flamingo vs. mockingbird: Is it bye-bye birdie for Florida’s state bird?
1+ week, 5+ day ago (168+ words) Florida's state bird has been the northern mockingbird for nearly 100 years. "It's been three years I've been trying to change the state bird," said Republican Rep. Jim Mooney of Islamorada, the sponsor of a bill to change it. It's been…...
After 50 years, Florida Natural History Museum publishes book on butterflies
2+ week, 4+ day ago (176+ words) The Florida Museum of Natural History in Gainesville has just published a draft of a book known as "The Butterflies of California." When the authors first started writing it in 1974, initial estimates were that it would take about five years....
Officials suspect bird flu after 12 swans die at Orlando's Lake Eola
2+ week, 4+ day ago (188+ words) A dozen of the iconic swans that live in the heart of downtown Orlando have died in recent days of an unknown cause, leading officials to suspect that bird flu is to blame. The deaths of the swans at Lake…...
In the snow, these salamanders get supercool
3+ week, 3+ day ago (508+ words) In ancient times, people thought moist-skinned salamanders could survive in fire. That's not true, of course, but some salamanders have a surprising ability to deal with another temperature extreme: freezing cold. In fact, blue-spotted salamanders can remain active even when…...
Eagle found injured in Cape Coral receives treatment and is recovering
3+ week, 3+ day ago (199+ words) A male bald eagle was recently admitted to the Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife wildlife hospital in Sanibel after being found downed in Cape Coral. One of CROW's volunteers responded to the alarm call and quickly transported the eagle…...
Marine scientists celebrate rare mom and calf whale sighting near Merritt Island
3+ week, 4+ day ago (466+ words) A pair of critically endangered North Atlantic right whales, a mom and her calf, were recently spotted just off the shores of Merritt Island. Fewer than 400 members of the species are left, according to Oceana, an international ocean conservation advocacy…...
Scientists say they have discovered 20 new species deep in the Pacific Ocean
3+ week, 5+ day ago (486+ words) Scientists believe they have discovered at least 20 new species in a deep part of the Pacific Ocean. The discoveries were found after researchers from the California Academy of Sciences retrieved 13 reef monitoring devices that had been placed in deep coral…...