Persistence for the Win at the Headwaters

In partnership with Alachua County Forever, ACT acquired 314 acres buffering the headwaters of the Santa Fe River from the Dinh family.

Located east of the city of Waldo, this new acquisition is adjacent along its norther border to the County’s Lake Alto Preserve. The waters of Lake Alto and its swamp flow north into the headwaters of the Santa Fe River, through nearby county-owned conservation lands protected earlier this year. There the flow transitions from a small stream of water into a distinct channelized, albeit narrow, river. Visitors to Lake Alto might be lucky enough to spot a bald eagle soaring overhead, while observing white ibis wading along the lakeshore or winding through bottomlands dotted with cinnamon and royal ferns.

Conservation of the Dinh property preserves the natural shoreline of Lake Alto and maintains the wetlands that filter and reduce pollutants entering the lake and, ultimately, the river. The property also provides excellent plant diversity and habitat for several endemic and listed species and features abundant wetland habitat for wading birds.

"ACT continues to be a critical partner in local conservation efforts,” stated Alachua County Environmental Program Manager Andi Christman. “This two decade long project could not have been completed without ACT’s partnership.” 

This collaboration between Alachua County and ACT is part of greater long-term effort to conserve the remaining large tracts along the headwaters and swamps that feed into the Santa Fe River. The results of which will improve water quality of the river and create a corridor for wildlife to roam freely.

Funds from the Wild Spaces & Public Places ballot initiative, supported by a half cent sales tax re-approved by Alachua County voters in 2022, and Amazing Give donations were used to conserve these lands from development and safeguard North Florida’s drinking water supply.

“This is another major win for Alachua County residents and for keeping Florida wild,” stated ACT’s Executive Director Tom Kay.

Cornell Lab of Ornithology Visits North Central Florida

The work that land trusts accomplish every day through fee acquisition, conservation easements, and land management has become a powerful tool for conserving wildlife habitat across the world. Not only can connecting and restoring land benefit native species of birds, but birds can also benefit land trusts. That simple premise is why the Cornell Lab of Ornithology launched its Land Trust Bird Conservation Initiative in 2013 in partnership with the Land Trust Alliance. Cornell's Small Grants Program provides funding to land trusts to increase the pace of land conservation with the goal of providing quality habitat for birds.

In October, Sara Barker, who serves as the Project Leader for the Land Trust Bird Conservation Initiative visited ACT in North Central Florida for a tour of several properties where grant projects funded by the initiative are underway.

Our first stop was at Crones' Cradle Conserve, which is a participant site for the Burning for Birds Conservation Collaborative. The collaborative is a partnership between ACT, Tall Timbers Research Station and Land Conservancy, Prescribed Burn Associations and local Audubon chapters to engage with landowners to conduct land restoration activities, such as prescribed fire, on their properties for the benefit of birds.

The fall wildflowers were in full bloom at Crones' Cradle following a growing season prescribed burn on the property in August. The goal of the burn was to restore habitat for bird species such as bobwhite quail, Bachman's sparrow, and eastern meadowlark. ACT Natural Resource Interns and Alachua Audubon Society volunteers conducted photo and bird surveys before and after the burn to document change in the habitat over time. Keep an eye out for an online StoryMap about this project soon!

Sara and ACT staff also visited Fox Pen Preserve, located in far eastern Alachua County, where Cornell grant funds have been utilized to plant native grasses and restore sandhill habitat that will benefit birds and other wildlife, such as gopher tortoise. This area of the preserve is open to the public to explore along hiking trails and features interpretive signs about birds, native habitat, and land restoration.

A big thanks to Cornell Lab of Ornithology for its support for these two important habitat conservation projects!

Photos: Top right - from left to right, Cornell Project Leader Sara Barker along with ACT staffers Erica Hernandez, Danny Rohan, and Heather Obara; bottom left - fall wildflowers in bloom in the recently burned unit at Crones' Cradle Conserve.

The Thrasher Family's Everlasting Impact

Preserving his family's legacy was important to John Early Thrasher III and led him to become a conservationist. John’s great-grandfather, Early Wyatt Thrasher moved the family to the Micanopy area from Georgia around 1876 to cultivate citrus. In 1896, John’s grandfather, John Sr., began J.E. Thrasher General Store, the oldest running mercantile hardware business in Micanopy, in operation for more than 70 years. It opened in a rented building where the town gazebo now stands. When that building was destroyed by fire in 1911, Thrasher Sr. moved his business into the family warehouse, which today houses the Micanopy Historical Society Museum.

The family owned many acres of land surrounding the historic town, some of which was property that skirts the northern edge of Tuscawilla Prairie, the 600-acre hammock and depression marsh that makes up the town’s southern border. When John was just ten years old his grandfather deeded him several acres as a gift. The young boy loved growing up on the prairie and as an older man used to recount stories about catching enormous fish when the basin would fill after prolonged rainy seasons and hurricanes, becoming Tuscawilla Lake.

The natural feature very much helps define life in southern Alachua County. In 2005, John and his wife, Eleanor, along with several other landowners worked closely with ACT to conserve Tuscawilla which was accomplished through generous donations and partner funding with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Florida Communities Trust.

Photo by Kim Davidson.

The preserve is a great place to see the interface of a hardwood hammock forest, fringed by stands of lofty native cabbage palms and opening up to a beautiful wet/dry prairie. In the winter, the preserve becomes home to great flocks of migratory birds including the boisterous sandhill cranes. Trails in the preserve cover 1.5 miles. There are great birding opportunities and a new viewing platform that sits beside centuries old live oaks.

Look over your shoulder and you might even see the ghost of old William “Billy” Bartram himself. “Puc Puggy” (the flower hunter), as the Seminoles who lived here called the Quaker naturalist, was a visitor. You can read all about Tuscawilla in his well-documented Travels of 1774.

Conservationists, Eleanor and John Thrasher passed away in 2017 and 2022 respectively, leaving behind a natural legacy and the gift of perpetual beauty in Tuscawilla Preserve.

This story was originally featured as part of ACT's 35 Days of Conservation, celebrating the history of ACT and the individuals that have supported its conservation mission over the years.

There is still much more land conservation to be accomplished. Help support these efforts and be a part of history here.

ACT's Natural Resource Interns Learn New Skills & Forge New Connections

ACT's Natural Resource Management Interns have just finished their sixth week in the field, and they have accomplished so much. During this semester, interns learned about integrated invasive species management on several ACT preserves, completed chainsaw training, and have been using their new knowledge and skills to help with preparing units for prescribed fire at Little Orange Creek Preserve.

Interns have also helped reroute a section of connection trail at Blue’s Creek Ravine Preserve for better visitor accessibility and less trail erosion, participated on a prescribed fire, installed a new fence at Marjorie A. Hoy Memorial Park at Orange Lake Overlook, met with members of ACT’s Projects Team to learn about how ACT acquires land, practiced plant identification skills, and attended landowner tours to gain a better understanding of land management on private lands. 

In addition to working hard in the field, ACT's interns have been building community with each other. At the beginning of September, Natural Resource Interns, Nonprofit Operations Interns, and ACT staff came together for an afternoon of beautyberry foraging and jelly-making at Prairie Creek Preserve. Not only did interns make jelly, but they started to make connections with interns and staff they do not normally work with. 

If you would like to support the growth and development of young natural resource and conservation professionals, consider donating to the Internship Fund In Memory of Ryan Crowder & Julia Reiskind here.

Walk & Talk at Santa Fe River Preserve (Main Entrance)

Friday, November 3rd from 3-4 p.m.

Join ACT staff for a hike of Santa Fe River Preserve featuring an interesting mix of flora which in turn support a wide diversity of wildlife along the upper Santa Fe River.

Stewardship Saturdays at Serenola Forest Preserve

Saturday, November 4th from 8:30-11:30 a.m.

Join us on the first and third Saturday of the month for a special volunteer-led workday at Serenola Forest Preserve. No R.S.V.P. required.

Walk & Talk at Tuscawilla Preserve

Friday, November 10th from 3-4 p.m.

Join ACT staff for a hike of Tuscawilla Preserve and see if you can spot any sandhill cranes on the prairie!

Emory Cares: Serving with Heart for 20 Years

Saturday, November 11th from 10 a.m.-3 p.m.

Join Emory Cares - Gainesville and ACT as a volunteer at the Cycling for Our Springs event, which raises funds to help protect local springs and conserve surrounding lands.

Walk & Talk at Prairie Creek Preserve (Kathy Cantwell Trailhead)

Friday, November 17th from 3-4 p.m.

Join ACT for a native plant hike at Prairie Creek Preserve with plant expert Susan Marynowski.

Stewardship Saturdays at Serenola Forest Preserve

Saturday, November 18th from 8:30-11:30 a.m.

Join us on the first and third Saturday of the month for a special volunteer-led workday at Serenola Forest Preserve. No R.S.V.P. required.

Visit ACT's Booth at the 42nd Annual Gainesville Downtown Festival & Art Show

November 18th & 19th from 10 a.m.-5 p.m.

Kick start the holidays at the Gainesville Downtown Festival & Art Show. Visit the ACT table to learn more about nearby nature preserves and ongoing programs and projects. Click here for festival info.

Giving Tuesday Volunteer Workday at Fox Pen Preserve

Tuesday, November 28th from 9 a.m.-12 p.m.

Give back this Giving Tuesday by volunteering with ACT at Fox Pen Preserve where we will be planting native grasses. R.S.V.P. here.

You make conservation possible! 

Thank you for donating your time, money, and energy to making ACT's work a success.

Please donate today - or consider including ACT in your estate planning - to save wild spaces, train the next generation of land stewards, and open up new public preserves to your community.

THANK YOU!

Banner image by Kim Davidson.