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- Info
Threats to Florida's biodiversity
| Author: |
Rocus, D.; Mazzotti, F.J. |
| Date: |
1996 |
| Periodical: |
SS-WEC-70. Gainesville, Fl: University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Florida Cooperative Extension Services, Wildlife Ecology and Conservation department. 3 p. |
| Link: |
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/BODY_UW107
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| Abstract: |
Look at a map of Florida, and what do you see? A spider web of roadways crisscrossing he state, converging on towns, from a small corner grocery store and gas station to huge metropolitan areas that sprawl for miles. A land that was once considered uninhabitable now has the fourth highest population in the country, and is expanding at a rate of over 600 people per day (ENFO Report). The land that was uninhabitable because of swamps and marshes is now kept dry through a network of canals. The dense forests have been cleared to make room for developments. Coastal prairie, pine flatwoods, hardwood hammocks, have all been sacrificed in the name of progress. Part of Florida's heritage still remains. Florida is one of the most species-rich states in the nation. But even this biological diversity is being threatened. The roadways that allow us to maneuver around the state confine wildlife to isolated tracts of land. Our homes remain dry, but the wetlands' wildlife are struggling to survive with a new, unnatural hydrological regime. We cut down forests to build our homes and feed our growing population, while destroying the homes and food of our native wildlife. |
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