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Rookery Island Update

On January 8, 2022, the Rookery Island Experiment was initiated  on a barren lifeless mound of dirt that was created in the middle of a newly developed pond south of Hope Point. A group of 20 volunteers hauled out and erected 2 newly constructed, modified osprey nesting platforms for nesting birds. Additionally, a separate  group of volunteers planted a small numbers of Buttonwood, March Elders, Slash Pine and Red Mangrove around the island in order to provide a food source for the birds that would come later.
 Earlier this month, a small team visited the island to check the plants progress as only Hurricane Ian repair and cleaning had been done. The team restocked the platforms with fresh cuttings from the Preserve. They were happy to find the original plantings looking strong and healthy.  The team also discovered new native plants taking root on the island. The original slash pines spurted from 3’ to 8’ tall in the two year timespan and no fewer than 20 new slash pines took hold on the opposite side of the island.
Most recently, volunteers worked to remove highly invasive Caesar Weed (Urena labota) from the Island. They noted that red mangroves are becoming well established around the perimeter of the island and starting to grow out on the outer shorelines of the pond. The most unexpected highlight of the day was the sighting of several tarpon rolling just off shore.