Jan. cold takes heavy toll (Florida)

[Snakemaster]

Cold took heavy toll on Florida wildlife
January's cold took a heavy toll on Everglades plants and animals. In the case of the pythons, that's a good thing.
BY CURTIS MORGAN
cmorgan@MiamiHerald.com
Despite four decades of slogging through Everglades marshes and mangroves, wildlife ecologist Frank Mazzotti had never experienced anything like the aftermath of frigid January. The confirmed casualty count so far:

• At least 70 dead crocodiles.

• More than 60 manatee carcasses.

• A bright-side observance of multiple frozen-stiff Burmese pythons, the scourge of the Everglades.

And also, perhaps the biggest fish kill in modern Florida history.

``What we witnessed was a major ecological disturbance event equal to a fire or a hurricane,'' said Mazzotti, a University of Florida associate professor. ``A lot of things have happened that nobody has seen before in Florida.''

The cold was simply brutal on many tropical plants and animals. Toxic iguana-sicles dropping into the mouths of unfortunate pooches was only the tip of the iceberg that descended for two weeks on South Florida.

While scientists are still surveying losses, it's already clear that the record chill wiped out shallow corals in the Keys and devastated manatees. A preliminary assessment that Everglades National Park scientists completed last week also documented a broad and heavy toll on everything from crocodiles to cocoplums to butterflies.

Dave Hallac, the park's chief of biological resources, summed up the impact in a word: ``substantial.''

Cold spells, like hurricanes and fires, are part of the natural cycle in South Florida, and scientists believe the system will recover -- but some species will certainly rebound more slowly than others.

``I wouldn't expect any catastrophic long-term kind of effects,'' said Luiz Barbieri, chief of marine fisheries research for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. ``Most likely, this has happened occasionally over thousands of years. The system has adapted to these episodic mortality events.''

Still, mortality numbers like this haven't been seen in decades in the park.

A record number of endangered manatees died from cold stress, most of them -- more than 60 -- found in park waters stretching into the Ten Thousand Islands on the Southwest Coast. More than 70 carcasses of North American crocodile were counted, a significant hit to a species removed from the endangered list only three years ago.

About 40 species of pineland plants suffered varying degrees of frost damage. On some tree island, cocoplums looked like they were burned. Half of the population of a caterpillar that morphs into the exceedingly rare Florida leafwing butterfly died.

Then there were the literally countless dead fish -- from tiny pilchards to large snook and tarpon.

The report -- compiled by Hallac and colleagues Jeff Kline, Jimi Sadle, Sonny Bass, Tracy Ziegler and Skip Snow and based on aerial and water surveys and reports from a host of other observers -- underplayed actual losses. It's impossible to cover an area as vast as the park, and carcasses can sink, float into thick mangroves and easily go overlooked.

TAKING ACTION

While the park has experienced colder days, January's chill was long and intense, punctuated with overcast skies, rain and one sub-freezing plunge. Mazzotti called it a ``perfect storm'' that left literally no warm refuges.

The chill was particularly dramatic in coastal waters. The park recorded temperatures that hovered below 68 degrees, a cold-stress limit for manatees, for 18 days; and below 60, the stress limit for snook, for 14 days.

``I'm really worried about the snook down here,'' said Hallac. ``It was amazing to see how many of the large, more mature, spawning-age fish were killed.''

The FWC has already closed snook season until Sept. 1. After reviewing catch reports and samples taken by scientists in coming months, the agency will decide whether to extend the ban on keeping the popular fish or changing regulations to protect any others, Barbieri said.

Cold-blooded reptiles and tropical plants and fish fared the worst, but some Glades species weathered the nasty weather well. Birds, for instance, emerged largely unruffled, and some were observed scavenging fish.

Only one death of an alligator, which reside happily in Louisiana, was reported. Crocs, at the northern end of their range in South Florida, died by the dozens, including one familiar to many anglers who fish Flamingo. The 13-foot, 450-pound croc, tagged as a hatchling in 1986, frequently lurked near the Whitewater Bay boat ramp.

The cold did benefit the park's battle to control exotic invaders. Frost slammed Old World Climbing Fern, an aggressive vine that smothers natives. Other exotics, from Asian swamp eels to the infamous Burmese python, also took hits scientists intend to further study.

THE STRUGGLE AHEAD

Scientists said recovery rates will vary among species. While snook, popular with sports anglers, has gotten the most attention from the public, the cold may have been more crippling to Goliath grouper, Barbieri said.

The fish, which can grow to massive size, nearly disappeared from Florida but had rebounded so well in recent years that wildlife managers had begun considering lifting a ban on keeping them. Goliaths died in massive numbers in the shallow Glades, considered a prime nursery. They also grow far more slowly than snook, taking six years or more to reach maturity, Barbieri said.

For some hard-hit areas and species, other outside factors can hinder recovery. Everglades marshes and coral reefs aren't nearly as healthy as they were hundreds of years ago.

Invasive plants, such as Brazilian pepper, weren't around to crowd out battered natives.

``If you're totally healthy and get a cold or flu, it's not a problem. If you've got diabetes and heart problems, it could be a lot more serious,'' Hallac said. ``The park is in that kind of compromised condition.''

[SUAD]

Wow, that's an interesting read. Not good for the manatees and crocs though....not good at all.

[Icicle]

Thanks, I needed a good read.

[Stargazer]

The thing that gets me is that they are more worried about snooks because there may not be enough for sportsman to catch. What the..?

[Sakara]

well thatsucks for the animals and such that died. but maye this will help ppl shut up about the snakes since they found a lot of dead ones -_-

[morti]

Originally Posted by Stargazer

The thing that gets me is that they are more worried about snooks because there may not be enough for sportsman to catch. What the..?

Sport fishing is a major part of the Florida economy. Tourists come from all around the world to fish Florida's waters. In these economically uncertain times, snook are a more tangible loss than Crocodiles or Manatees.

[Stargazer]

Originally Posted by morti

Sport fishing is a major part of the Florida economy. Tourists come from all around the world to fish Florida's waters. In these economically uncertain times, snook are a more tangible loss than Crocodiles or Manatees.

That's exactly the point. People are more concerned about animals for their recreational uses than for the sake of them being living things. Too bad you can't fish for burms and iguanas for fun, or everyone would be trying to save those too.

	Iguana Iguana

[morti]

Burms and Iguanas are invasive. The state of Florida would love for people to help "Fish" for them (hunt for them). We don't want to save them. We want to remove them.

	Iguana Iguana

[Stargazer]

Yes, exactly the point.

[morti]

Originally Posted by Stargazer

Yes, exactly the point.

So are you saying that you don't want to remove the burms and iguanas from florida?

	Iguana Iguana

[Stargazer]

No, that isn't the point I was making at all. I was pointing out that simple compassion for the fish was not a motive in wanting to keep it alive.

[Hairless]

Originally Posted by Stargazer

No, that isn't the point I was making at all. I was pointing out that simple compassion for the fish was not a motive in wanting to keep it alive.

Nope, simple compassion is not enough. It's not enough to pay the salaries of the FWC workers that keep track of the health of the fisheries. It's not enough to preserve water/land resources. It's not enough for people to sit behind a computer and worry about such things. It takes money from the people who use the resource and more than 4 billion dollars a year comes from fishing in Florida.

I guess the compassionate might try to argue without fishing there wouldn't be a need, but money from fishing ensures survival of more than just the sportfish, it protects entire ecosystems. Who keeps industrial waste in check and what group's money infuences these regulations? Who's money is helping to regulate trawlers, funding studies to bring back species from the brink of extinction through regulations? ...Like it or not, man has his 'hands' in the environment and we have certainly abused it, but without the money from those using the resource, would water resources be better off? Would steps to correct the wrongs in the past be moving along so fast? - Not a chance without the concern and money from fishermen. This is (was) a 'natural' dissaster, but who is really concerned about the state of the fish? Thank the fishermen (and women), their concern and money (in no small way) will help understand the impact and ensure recovery...

[Stargazer]

So is this now a defense for hunting and fishing thread? I was simply pointing out that the tragedy of the hardships these poor animals endured while dying is not even in the back of anyone's minds. I was not arguing the great love people have for fishing and hunting and all the revenue it brings to the state. I think that's a given.

[morti]

This read like you were upset about the fact that people fish for snook:

Originally Posted by Stargazer

The thing that gets me is that they are more worried about snooks because there may not be enough for sportsman to catch. What the..?

This read like you were upset about the fact the people fish for snook:

Originally Posted by Stargazer

That's exactly the point. People are more concerned about animals for their recreational uses than for the sake of them being living things. Too bad you can't fish for burms and iguanas for fun, or everyone would be trying to save those too.

Originally Posted by Stargazer

So is this now a defense for hunting and fishing thread? I was simply pointing out that the tragedy of the hardships these poor animals endured while dying is not even in the back of anyone's minds. I was not arguing the great love people have for fishing and hunting and all the revenue it brings to the state. I think that's a given.

So forgive me for being confused. I seem to have completely missed your point. You are actually upset that animals died in the cold weather?

This article contains some good news for us: There are burmese pythons in the everglades that froze to death. That is BIG news because if they can't even survive in the everglades, that means that Rodda and Reed were grossly mistaken with their map of where they can survive.

We ought to be dancing and singing right about now. A major news source published the truth for once.

	Iguana Iguana

[Stargazer]

Yes, if it stops the python ban, it will have a positive consequence. But please forgive me if I can't ever jump for joy to hear about animals freezing to death who didn't ask to be brought here in the first place. I find it sad. That is my first reaction. It's a tragedy that may coincidentally help our cause in the end. Some people just have compassion for the suffering of animals.

[TammyJamaica]

I see and understand both points of view and share Stargazer's feelings for the animals. I agree though that the fact that the snakes died goes a far way towards convincing concerned people that the burm "menace" is not going to spread very far into colder areas!!!

[Icicle]

Just think about the thousands of ants you drive over every day to work, Maybe we should ban driving?
Can't forget about all the roaches being gassed during the summer months, maybe we should ban roach spray?
Maybe we should ban all animals that kill off they own because there off spring were sick or deformed.
Mother Nature has a way of dealing with things in her own way.
Heck while we are banning stuff let ban Fire cause it burns away the forest and all the living things living in trees, or for consuming Oxygen that we need to breath.
Why not force mankind to live in a bubble so we can not harm mother nature any more.
And if you really think I'll be forced to live in a bubble for the rest of my life, you will have a surprise waiting for you.

[Jeremy2792]

I am an avid fishermen here in Florida, it is not a hobby for me, it is a lifestyle. And this "freeze-over" has effected me in many ways. Let me put it in a perspective that you may understand; Now that we had this tragic freeze in Florida that killed a lot of our game fish, i.e. Snook, Tarpon, and even Goliath Grouper, being that some of these fish have experienced danger in their population numbers, we as fishermen, are now going to suffer the consequences which may result in not being able to catch or harvest these fish at all [Which I support any bans necessary to stabilize population for the better]. Now, I would say that this freeze that happened here in Florida could also have an effect on you. "The Python-Boa Ban." You should be able to relate. You are an "avid snake keeper/lover" now your rights of keeping these snakes are at jeopardy due to the impact that these snakes have had in our ecosystem here in South Florida. I see your point on not being happy that the snakes died that "did not ask to be brought here" I will assume that you have in your possession "non-native" species of snakes to your state/country, therefore you are a supporter for the invasive Burms and Pythons that are now in the Everglades resulting in "tragic" deaths that they would not have suffered in their native environment. If you think that 100dead crocs and 100 dead manatees are tragic from a natural cause, I would love to see an accurate number on the manatees and crocs that the invasive snakes have eaten. Take a trip to the Everglades if you need to see the reality of the negative impact that these invasive species have caused.

[TammyJamaica]

Next gripping horror thriller:

"Invasive Python Vs. Manatee & Croc - Part I".

My imagination goes wild.

To each his own - we have our opinions, and we cannot help that, because we are human, it is what makes up our character. Sometimes we can learn from others to see a different point of view and realize that ours was biased or illogical; sometimes we have our opinions proven to be grounded in fact.

Never actually heard of a python eating a manatee! I guess it might be possible for a 13 foot burm to swallow a baby manatee if given the chance.
Manatees are aquatic mammals so I think it is really a stretch.

Anyway, whatever.

[TammyJamaica]

Originally Posted by morti

This read like you were upset about the fact that people fish for snook:
This read like you were upset about the fact the people fish for snook:
So forgive me for being confused. I seem to have completely missed your point. You are actually upset that animals died in the cold weather?
This article contains some good news for us: There are burmese pythons in the everglades that froze to death. That is BIG news because if they can't even survive in the everglades, that means that Rodda and Reed were grossly mistaken with their map of where they can survive.
We ought to be dancing and singing right about now. A major news source published the truth for once.

Morti, Stargazer feels upset because she feels sorry for the actual animals that died in the freeze. She is sorry for their suffering even though she knows that in the case of the pythons, their death happens to be a big point for those opposed to the python ban. Stargazer is simply expressing her feelings for the actual suffering of the animals, being that she is genuinely feeling their pain for them, as I myself can understand and appreciate.