Florida Wildlife Corridor
The FLWC is made possible by a bipartisan law passed in 2021 and involves efforts by government leaders and businessmen as well as conservationist.
The corridor is home to 60 species at risk of extinction such as the crested caracara, snail kite, Florida grasshopper sparrow, red-cockaded woodpecker, whooping crane, wood stork, West Indian manatee, Gulf sturgeon, Okaloosa darter, Florida sand skink, and eastern indigo snake.
[1] The Florida Wildlife Corridor Act is the result of over 40 years of conservation work, much of which was driven by Professor Larry Harris and Reed Noss.
Starting in the 1980s, they realized that Florida's rapid development was causing serious habitat loss and fracturing, and the only way to address it was through large-scale conservation efforts.
Assisted by one of Harris's students, David Maehr, brought forth information that Florida black bears were using habitat corridors that stretch across both public and private lands.
The property owner grants the right to enforce these restrictions to a qualified third party, such as a public agency or non-profit organization.
One of the key benefits of the Florida wildlife corridor is that it plays a role in the protection of several sources of water in the surrounding area, for example rivers, estuaries, wetlands etc.
[8] Other benefits of this wildlife corridor include benefits to the people who reside in close proximity to this area by way of flood protection, ranching and fishing sectors, and the Everglades headwaters which is one of the sources that brings water to the reservoirs within the corridor and the driving force behind the preservation of a large portion of Florida's drinkable water.
The sites were chosen based on proximity to each other and differences in fragmentation, the Ocala National Forest falling within the area of the Florida Wildlife Corridor and city of Lynne right outside it.
An edge effect occurs as the landscape shifts from one habitat to another, due to changes in the population or community structures that exist at the boundary.
Roads, power lines, and other infrastructure can break up habitats even within the designated wildlife corridors, making them less effective in terms of facilitating animal movement and migration.
For example, large-scale infrastructure projects such as highways, pipelines, or urban development may conflict with efforts to protect wildlife habitats.
Additionally, expanding protected areas may limit opportunities for commercial development or natural resource extraction, such as logging or mining.
Lastly, establishing and maintaining the Florida Wildlife Corridor requires ongoing investment in monitoring, management, and restoration activities.
[27] The greatest impact to the native wildlife are the roadways that connect Florida's cities to one another but can have an isolating effect on the animals that call the state home.
[31] A report by Florida Atlantic University, Archbold Biological Station, Live Wildly Foundation found that about 170,000 acres of privately owned land is voluntarily conserved.
