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"Ding" Darling Wildlife Society Newsletter
March 17, 2016
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NOTICE: Lecture Seating Policy
Seating for the lectures is limited and available on a first-come basis. Arrive one hour early to assure seating. Early arrivals can save one seat each and then may explore the Visitor & Education Center or Indigo Trail. Saved seats must be filled 15 minutes before lecture or risk reassignment.
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| Green Heron Photo by Dick Stilwell |
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| The toxic Lionfish threatens local marine populations. |
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Tomorrow, March 18: Lionfish Lecture
In 2010, the journal
Trends in Ecology and Evolution released a publication citing the Lionfish invasion as one of the top 15 threats to global biodiversity. Emily Stokes, Lionfish Program Assistant at the
Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF) in Key Largo, will address the issue during two "Invasion of the Lionfish" presentations beginning at
10 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Friday, March 18, in the Visitor & Education Center.
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Speaker Emily Stokes
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T
oday, Lionfish populations have exploded and are taking over fragile reef habitat from
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Thank you to our wonderful sponsors for the 2016 Lecture Series:
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Help Save Our Island!
"Ding" Darling Wildlife Society has undertaken a campaign to acquire 8.51 acres on Sanibel Island's Wulfert Road as a crucial wildlife corridor for the "Ding" Darling Refuge. We must raise $2 million in private funds to purchase the parcel, which lies between SCCF land and the Refuge.
Donors have already committed $500,000 of needed funds, so the goal is to raise the remaining $1.5 million by February 2017. If not preserved by the Refuge, the land could be developed with as many as five dwellings and
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For more information on making a tax-deductible gift and/or pledge, contact DDWS Executive Director Birgie Miller at 239-292-0566 or by
email.
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Ian Bartoszek with a Burmese Python. Photo by Paul Andreadis.
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Friday, March 25: Pythons in Paradise
The invasion of exotic Burmese Pythons in the Florida Everglades has created monumental problems for native fauna. Ian Bartoszek, a biologist with the
Conservancy of Southwest Florida, has extensive experience in the
collection and identification of amphibians and reptiles across the Greater Everglades ecosystem. His two "Pythons in Paradise: Collaborative Burmese Python Research in SW Florida" presentations
begin at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. on
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Wednesday, March 30 Film: A World Without Fish?
T
he documentary film
The End of the Line: Where Have All the Fish Gone?
continues the fourth annual "Ding" Darling Wednesday Film Series on
March 30, 2016, at 2:30 p.m.
in the Visitor & Education Center auditorium.
Based on the critically acclaimed book by Charles Clover,
End of the Line
delves into the global overfishing crisis, particularly the imminent extinction of the Bluefin Tuna. Scientists discuss how this depletion has slipped under the public radar and how
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Watch the trailer here.
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Thank you to our 2016 Film Series Sponsor for making this possible:
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The current Junior Duck Stamp features two wood ducks portrayed by Andrew Kneeland of Wyoming
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The public is invited to attend the judging of the Federal Junior Duck Stamp (JDS) Contest at "Ding" Darling
in celebration of Earth Day on April 22, 2016. This is a first-ever event for the Refuge, which annually hosts the contest judging at the state level.
"This is beyond exciting!" said Ranger Becky Larkins, the Refuge Education Specialist who also runs the Florida JDS program. "It's only fitting that we get to host a judging, because the Junior Duck Stamp program actually started right here on Sanibel Island, and it was Jay 'Ding' Darling who began
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April 29:
Deadline for Day Camp
April 29, 2016, marks the deadline for the second annual
Nature Explorers Summer Day Camp, which runs six weeks this year, starting June 20. Campers can apply for one five-day session.
Click here
for more information on the camp and an application.
If you or someone you know is interested in an internship position for this camp, please complete and return
(Left) Campers learn about marine creatures first hand at Tarpon Bay Explorers.
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A whopper thanks to our "Ding" Darling & Doc Ford's Tarpon Tournament sponsors for 2016:
Title Sponsor:
Presenting Sponsor:
Platinum Sponsors:
Gold Sponsors:
Since our tarpon tourney pays out 100 percent of registration fees to tournament winners, we are only able to raise funds for the J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge through silent auctions and sponsorships.
Click to see sponsor levels. Email or call Birgie Miller at 239-292-0566 to become a sponsor or learn more about donating auction items.
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"Hey Tricolored Heron, do you know how the Irish jig got started? ....
Too much drink and not enough restrooms!"
"I'm leaving."
Snowy Egret and top Tricolored Heron from Ruth Ann Schwart. Bottom Tricolored Heron from Jim Ory.
If
you have taken any beautiful, interesting,
or just plain goofy photos taken at the Refuge, send them to Society intern
Carrie Alexander
for a chance to be featured in upcoming newsletters.
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Smithsonian Water/Ways Exhibit - October 29-December 9, 2016
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These are just snapshots of some of the things taking place at your Wildlife Refuge. Please check our website at
www.dingdarlingsociety.org to learn more!
Sincerely,
"Ding" On The Wing composed by
Designed by Sarah Lathrop and interns Carrie Alexander and Anna Grubb
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