Welcome to Florida's Nature!
I spent many days as a young boy roaming the woodlands and beaches of Martin County with my father,
who raised and hybridized orchids as well as other native
and exotics - slogging along behind him through swamps, woodlands, along
rivers... you get the idea!
As a result I became familiar with many plants and animals of South Florida
(sometimes painfully so)
gaining respect & admiration for nature along the way. Of course, then there was a
lot more nature to
explore, we would at times spend an entire day hiking, fishing and/or beachcombing
without seeing another single soul.
My interest
in plant over the years went from landscaping to growing native and exotic
species as Bonsai, which required bushing up (to say the least) on propagation techniques, cultivation and
growth habits of readily available native trees and shrubs suitable for
that purpose. (Sorry Dad, I really was paying attention!)
Although I still "putter around" with my Bonsai I'm primarily interested in the
conservation of our remaining natural Florida resources.
I well remember what Florida once was like and love hiking, camping and just
being surrounded by the "real Florida". photographing Florida's incredible
variety of flora and fauna, it is a source of satisfaction and unending
fascination for me.
So, it's very unsettling for me to see the loss of all types of natural habitat through
the rapid, somewhat
chaotic development we have experienced and the diversion of water from wetlands that are
so critical to the survival of our native species, as well as providing
fresh water to Florida's human population.
This website came about as an personal effort to provide some insight/ information about Florida's unique nature with the hopes of fostering a more
caring attitude toward our beautiful land.
With global warming and
the resulting changes to localized environments worldwide it may
seem that being so concerned with Florida's woes is trivial by
comparison, my response is that we all need to "clean our side of
the street", mountains are moved one piece at a time not all at
once.
My father once said to me years ago, "Someday Florida will be
nothing but desert, concrete and asphalt, you better enjoy it while
you can", I remember wondering how that could ever be possible, now
I see how it could actually come to pass.
Water shortages, saltwater intrusion into fresh water aquifers and wells and
reckless destruction of Florida's natural resources are very real, Florida's
overall land mass was once 60% freshwater wetlands, today that number is
approximately 30% and still declining, we are draining our drinking water into
the ocean via the use of ditches, dikes and canals.
There is much talk about the conservation of our natural resources and
there has been some progress in that respect; the proposed Everglades
restoration project would be the largest of its kind in the country,
that is if the funding is not cut... overall
harmful practices such as the digging of deep retention ponds and
the use of ditches, dikes and canals that divert rainwater runoff
from (remaining) localized wetlands are still commonplace.
If you're reading this you probably have some interest in the conservation of
our natural resources and I would urge you to support such efforts by all
available means, sending an e-mail or letter to local and state government
officials stating your support for conservation, volunteering a bit of time at a
state park or joining organized groups such as the Audubon Society can and does
make a difference.
I hope you find what you're looking for on the site... you are welcome to
e-mail me with comments & suggestions concerning the website.
Enjoy
Florida's Nature!
Sincerely, Ed Weislo
P.S.
I have received several requests for permission to use the material on this
website for educational purposes, please know that anything I write, photograph
and/or publish may be used for educational purposes at no charge. All I ask for is
that proper
acknowledgement be given and for prior
(e-mail) notice.
Now, if you want to profit from MY
WORK, then you need to make me an offer. Anyone who uses my material for any
part of a profit making venture without my written permission will be dealt with
in as severely a way as is possible and then some. In other words - don't tread
on me...and have a nice day!
Ed. |
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