Conservation lands in Florida are managed by various agencies, to accomplish a variety of goals. These might include managing for maximum hunting opportunity, production of timber resources or freshwater resource protection and conservation.  The Apalachicola Reserve stewardship program specifically strives to have its managed lands mimic conditions found in Florida’s natural communities prior to European settlement impact. The health of Florida’s ecosystems depends on dynamic natural processes associated with fire, hydrology and a delicate ecological balance between native species. Restoration and maintenance of the original landscapes of Reserve-managed lands are accomplished by re-establishing those processes.  Wetlands make up the greatest portion of those lands. An additional aspect of the Reserve's stewardship program includes protection of cultural resources on its managed lands, and allowing for public use of suitable upland recreation areas.

Priority Topics

Habitat Alteration

• Technical Assistance: The stewardship program focuses on partnerships with other land managers and conservation groups (public and private) to accomplish common goals of conservation land restoration. The program routinely assists others within the region with their resource management goals. Further, Reserve stewardship staff formally provide input to various management guidance documents for the major land managing agencies within the Reserve boundary. These efforts result in land management activities that further the goal of habitat restoration and watershed protection. The stewardship program maintains a strong partnership with The Nature Conservancy and assists with efforts toward conservation land acquisition.

• Habitat Restoration and Conservatio: Florida’s natural areas have seen alteration and degradation from a variety of sources. The Reserve stewardship program manages its land to restore and maintain natural communities in an “original” state. This is accomplished through the implementation of specific land management activities.The fragmentation of natural communities from roads and development, coupled with the establishment of vast  timber farms, have led to extensive fire suppression; either by static artificial barriers preventing fire spread, or the active suppression of forest fires. Most of Florida's natural communities and many plant (and animal) species depend on recurring fire for their very survival. The re-introduction of fire through a complex “Prescribed Burn” program mimics naturally occurring fire on Reserve-managed lands. This process restores natural communities by reducing the amount of woody species and encouraging grasses and other herbaceous species to expand. More than 20 listed plant species occur on Reserve-managed land. Many of these are threatened or endangered species within the state as well as nationally and globally. Most are dependent on recurring fire for survival. Florida has lost more than 50% (9 million acres) of its natural wetlands in the past 200 years. Most of this loss may be attributed to wetland drainage and filling. The natural flow of water across a landscape of natural wetlands is critical to the quality of water finding its way into our rivers, bays and oceans. The Reserve stewardship program restores hydrologic function to natural areas by removing disturbances that impact natural water flow or repairing damage done to the landscape by various activities. Through ditch plugging, road removal or alteration with water crossings, and repair to fire-plow scarred wetlands, the natural slower movement of water is restored. The slower movement of “sheet-flow” water across the landscape naturally polishes the water and allows for slow release into nearby water bodies. This process, combined with a landscape with restored groundcover, conserves soil and decreases turbidity. Many new “exotic” plant species have been introduced into the natural landscape. Many of these plants have the ability to displace a natural community of high diversity with thick “mono-cultures” of a single species. The overall result can be a catastrophic loss of both plant and animal diversity. The Reserve stewardship program continually monitors its land for “exotic” species infestations. Exotic plants found are either chemically treated with the appropriate herbicide or physically removed by hand. Chinese Tallow, Cogon Grass, and Japanese Climbing Fern are the current focus for removal. It is suspected that climate change will encourage the local introduction of species otherwise found further south.

• Habitat-Species Monitoring: The stewardship program monitors the effects of its management activities using a variety of methods. The effects of “Prescribed Burning” are monitored through the use of precise “photo-points” established to gather long-term visual changes to the landscape. Individual species surveys are conducted to determine changes in populations of the various listed plant species. Many of the listed plant species have shown a dramatic increase in numbers directly attributable to the correct application of fire on managed lands. Staff has conducted thorough “fire-history” research to help determine appropriate management action for restoration. Extensive dendro-chronology (studying tree growth-rings) work relating directly to fire history has been accomplished and is on-going on Reserve lands. Direct measurement of tree growth is taken using expanding metal “bands” placed around pine tree trunks.

• Outreach and Public Access: Public access to Reserve-managed lands is mandated by the State of Florida. The Reserve provides a variety of public access options to suitable lands. Hiking trails, fishing access parking areas, manicured picnic areas and remote “leave-no-trace” paddling campsites are all available and maintained by the stewardship staff. The Reserve stewardship program has partnered with two not-for-profit organizations established specifically to further its management goals. Both organizations assist efforts with public outreach, special events and financial support, and are a source of many volunteers. Reserve stewardship has established and staffs a “Preserve Center” facility in support of Reserve-managed lands outside the Reserve boundary.