| When Little Pine
Island's wetlands were drained by "mosquito ditches" in the
1960s, the shallow lens of fresh groundwater was removed and
the unique high marsh habitats withered. Soon, the island was
infested with exotic plant species - chief among them
Melaleuca quinquenervia or "punk tree," Schinus
terabinthifolius (Brazilian Pepper), and Casuarina
(Australian Pine). Most aggressive were the Melaleuca,
creating dense single-species forests where little else could
flourish. The presence of native birds and animals plummeted
dangerously near oblivion. |
|
Perpetual
Maintenance -- Once cleared of exotics, maintaining the
land is a routine and low-cost process. Any regenerating
seedlings are simply removed by hand and stacked for
mulching. | |
| In 1996,
Mariner Properties Development, Inc. entered into a
public/private partnership with the State of Florida to fully
restore Little Pine Island. In 1997, under the guidance of
scientists and the oversight of both state and federal
agencies, the restoration work began.
|
Goals:
 |
Remove the exotic plants and re-establish native plant
and animal habitats on over 1,600 acres of the
island. |
|
Restore the historic tidal and freshwater flows which
once supported the varied native habitats of the
island. |
|
Methodology:
First, temporary roads are
installed over filter-cloth to reduce impacts to habitat and
to facilitate later road removal. In order to reduce impacts
to sensitive wetland habitats, restoration personnel use
chainsaws instead of heavy equipment, hand-removing an average
of 30 tons of exotic biomass - roughly equal to the cargo
capacity of a tractor-trailer - per acre.
At the
same time, the miles of old mosquito ditches are being filled
in and leveled. This has restored the sheetflow of water,
encouraging wildlife to return to the area.
Hand-removal of the exotic biomass, rather than burning
in place, is necessary in order to meet rigorous ecological
success criteria. Though laborious and time-consuming, this
minimizes exotic seedling regeneration and creates optimal
conditions for re-establishment of native plant and animal
habitats.
Under the
guidance of botanists, the Little Pine Island Wetland
Restoration & Mitigation Bank has established a Native
Plant Nursery on the island. This nursery is constantly
stocked with the varieties of native shrubs, ferns and trees
which once occupied the areas taken over by exotics. Wherever
needed, these native species are planted in newly cleared
areas to further speed the restoration process. |
|
This map was
generated by computer in 1996, based on an aerial photo
prior to restoration. Consulting ecologists walked the
land, observing and making notes of the types of
habitats and their condition. Each white number on the
map denotes an observation point. The bright red areas
indicate the highest infestations of exotic plant
species.Click on the
map. | |
The delicate
balance of nature, once restored, will need scientific monitoring
and oversight into the future, with annual reports to the DEP and
other agencies. Regenerating exotic seedlings must literally be
found and pulled up one by one. These tasks will require time and
money, but without them the island could again become vulnerable to
exotic infestation and habitat loss.
The Little Pine
Island Trust Fund, supported by 5% of all mitigation credit sales
and expected to exceed $1 million, will earn enough interest yearly
to pay for all maintenance forever.
| --
This series of photos shows the restoration progress through
time. |
The chief
ecologist for the Little Pine Island restoration
project is Kevin
L. Erwin. For a link to his website, visit our News
& Events page.
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