Six Mile Cypress Slough

Six Mile Cypress is quite the place to visit. Being from Miami, I have little knowledge of Cypress trees and their ecosystem. Seeing these massive trees in person and learning many of them are hundreds of years old made me appreciate them like the Sequoia trees in California. These cypress trees create such a unique habitat it's fascinating. Biodiversity at it's finest. Seasonally the slough can be a swamp with no dry ground at all but months later during the dry season, you could walk through it barefoot without getting your feet wet. Yet the animals living in this ecosystem are accustomed to such change. I enjoyed how easily we witnessed the wildlife first hand. We saw venomous snake species such as the Water Moccasin, young alligators, Egrets and Herons all just casually enjoying their habitat. I noticed the climate once we were in the Cypress Slough was much cooler than the outside world. I also learned that climate and temperature determine the gender of alligator eggs. Eggs above 90 degrees tend to be females and eggs below 89 degrees tend to be males. We learned how important every species is to the ecology of the slough. Alligators while being a keystone predator, balance the food chain and population of many species directly and indirectly. Alligators occasionally eat Egrets, but more often eat many other predators of Egrets such as raccoons. They bring a balance to both Egret and Raccoon species without intention. While walking deeper into the cypress slough we learned about Liken on trees and how they signify a healthy habitat. Red Liken signifies the purest air quality and you could tell without a doubt when taking a deep breathe. You could truly taste the difference and it's incredible. The Six Mile Cypress Slough is truly one of the beauties of Lee County. A place that makes you want to come back for more during different seasons of the year. A place with pristine wildlife that if you're lucky enough you can see anything from a Panther to a Bear.

Food Intake

Within the last 24 hours I've consumed a wide variety of foods and drinks. Listed below in chronological order is my diet for the day.
Breakfast: Publix brand Spring Water 34 ounces, Simply Orange orange juice 12 ounces, Chic Fil A chicken biscuit, 4 count chicken mini's, blueberry bagel with 2 Publix brand eggs.
Lunch: Publix brand thin crust pizza.
Essentially all of my daily intake was purchased as well as pre made excluding the 2 eggs I cooked. Many of the products I buy are Publix brand and are manufactured and distributed from the same local processing plant. The same principle applies for products purchased from Chic Fil A. The ingredients are then cooked and sold at the Chic Fil A on campus. I assume most of these products are transported from factories and stores to my plate within a week; two weeks at the very most. I cannot measure the amount of energy used to produce my meals but I assume a significant amount because all of these products are pre produced. I was not able to produce any of these ingredients on my own. Almost all of the packaging for my foods are recyclable. My food choices are not as sustainable as they could be. If I had more free time as well as income, I would purchase groceries from farmer's markets and local vendors. To improve my food choices I can always choose more sustainable brands than Publix brand. Many smaller brands have a larger focus on sustainability and quality in their products.

Estero Island Historic Cottage

Fort Myers has more substantial, significant history than I would have ever known without this field trip. I'm very passionate about history as well as Florida and am surprised at how much I learned when visiting the historic cottage on Estero Island. The Calusa native americans as well as the Seminoles were involved in trading bartering and had established domain in the area. Years later by the time of the second world war, an air base was stationed nearby. Pilots would have routine drills over Fort Myers beach on a regular basis. I could only imagine what a sight that was to watch. Residents even speculated that there were German submarines just off the Fort Myers coastline; no declassified documents have confirmed these speculations yet. Speaking of the coastline, some record breaking fishing took place in those same waters. Tuna and sawfish measuring at twelve even fourteen feet in length were caught in the early 1900's. Sadly roughly only 10% of the world's large game fish are still alive. On a lighter note, the land environment on Estero Island is thriving. Many plant species flourish other than a cancer that spreads throughout red mangroves. There are many species such as resurrection ferns and strangler figs that thrive in such ecosystems, both symbiotically and parasitically. Where Resurrection ferns hold moisture on the trees they live on, Strangler Figs attach their roots and over time wrap around and constrict the host tree until it suffocates or in some cases breaks from physical pressure. I saw a fully grown Sabal Palm snapped in two like a twig by a Strangler Fig.  Strangler Figs can cause this devastation in a matter of years. Estero Island has a wonderful history connected by living generations that date back to it's earliest settlers. This field trip was very enlightening and I would recommend it to anyone, Florida native or not.

(The ruthless Strangler Fig)

Downtown Fort Myers

I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to Downtown Fort Myers. Downtown was much more diverse and "alive" than I expected it to be. I immediately noticed the historic aura of downtown. Many of the buildings have the same exterior structure they were originally built in. There are many convenient means of transportation such as the LeeTran public transportation system. Downtown is easily walkable and there are many parking lots conveniently located throughout the area. Most businesses seem very easily accessible and I had no difficulty navigating through downtown for the first time. I explored downtown by foot and noticed many traffic calming measures such as stop signs and prominently displayed crosswalks for pedestrians. These features play an important role in the relationship between automobiles and pedestrians and without a doubt keep the streets safe. Over the last decade I've noticed many areas have increased awareness of traffic calming measures such as my hometown of Miami. Three interesting landmarks I explored throughout my tour of downtown were the "Uncommon Friends" fountain in Centennial Park, the library, and Palm park. The fountain taught me new historic facts such as that Henry Ford, Harvey Firestone, and Thomas Edison were all winter residents of Fort Myers in it's earliest years. The fountain depicts the three historic inventors around a campfire with natural Florida wildlife such as alligators and manatees in surrounding waters. The library in downtown is one of the more modernized areas of town so that stood out to me. I noticed art installations displayed in the plaza and this was where I noticed the non-native vegetation but this area was one of the most well kept and felt safest. Palm Park was very shady and a great place to learn everything you need to know about the diversity of palm trees and their country's of origin. Palm Park is a small park that has more unique palm species than I could even account for. I could go there several times and find a new species every time. This park was important to me because it made me appreciate the world as a whole and how far some pam trees have originated from.

Ecosystem Services: Water Usage

I am slightly upset that this is the first time I have used this water calculator. Why was this not brought to knowledge years ago? Especially as a freshman and sophomore in college. Measuring my daily activities per gallon truly puts a visual perspective on all the accumulation. I had no idea I was using upwards of 50 gallons of water a day. Before I entered my daily uses into the calculator, I assumed I was using 25-50 gallons AT MOST. To my surprise I use roughly 85 gallons of water on a daily basis. I am always conscious of taking steps to preserve water. At the beginning of each year I purchased low flow shower heads to be installed in my current dorm as well as my freshman year dorm. My family at home is even more aware and involved water reservation. I believe every appliance we own is low flow. We only do laundry once a week and make a conscious effort to fill the dish washer to capacity before running it. I believe water use can be reduced even more by being more aware when watering plants and grass. My mother normally does that on her own and keeps track of the time the water stays running. When she is busy I offer to help with the process but to be honest I have no idea how to calculate the amount of running water used from the hose. I tend to time it similar to how she does but I don't truly know how much water is being used gallon per gallon. And that is just in my individual household alone. The average household may use substantially more water than mine, yet I'd love to believe my neighbors and community use even less. So many every day activities need water to be used even outside the household. Farms have water systems spread over miles of vegetated land. I believe water is such an essential resource for daily life let alone life at all. We are accustomed to it but we need to appreciate it's value and scarcity. Unfortunately we look to places such as California that are in constant drought to learn how to conserve water for ourselves. I believe water should be used WHEN NEEDED. It is a nonpermanent resource yet we often see it as an abundant luxury.

(The White bordered area is the DRGR:Density Reduction Groundwater Resource, where most of SouthWest Florida obtains it's water)

FGCU Food Forest

             There is no place on campus like the FGCU Food Forest. Quite frankly, I personally have never been to a food forest before this experience. Prior to the trip, I was unaware FGCU even had a food forest and could only guess as to what a food forest truly is.
             Upon arrival as we walked into the entrance I knew I was in for something entirely different from what I had imagined. I learned so much I honestly don't know where to start without writing an entire encyclopedia, with volumes regarding each plant and it's purpose. Heck I could even write a short story solely about how the food forest came to be.
As we journeyed through the food forest the first plant that fascinated me was the Moringa. This plant is indigenous to Africa and is essentially, THE super plant. If I was stranded on an island with Moringa trees, I guarantee you I'd be the most nutritious island survivor in history. Gram for gram the Moringa plant has more vitamin C than six oranges, the potassium of three bananas, the calcium equivalent to four gallons of milk and twice as much protein, as much carotene as four carrots, three times more vitamin E than spinach, and three times as much iron as almonds. No, none of that is exaggerated; the Moringa is the Holy Grail of nutritious crops. Mind you this is only the first of many fascinating crops found in the FGCU Food Forest.
             The whole principle and history of the FGCU Food Forest embraces sustainable food and is a living statue showing how much of an impact individuals can make towards sustainability. The food forest is very young, and completely student run. It was founded, and is still managed by self driven, like minded students, individuals and alumni who believe in sustainable food and support the ecological mission of the University. The entire food forest is so organized and scientifically laid out to create the perfect ecological environment. For example, the banana trees are placed at the lowest point all the way in the back of the forest to retain all moisture possible from run off and drainage. Pineapples are planted on a bank tilted at a specific angle and direction to obtain optimal sunlight and keep the rain water from drowning the plant. Fire bush (pictured below) is abundant in the entire food forest yet each plant is strategically placed to be a key pollinator for it's surrounding plants. The Fire bush is the host plant of the Zebra butterfly which always comes back to this specific plant to breed caterpillars. Therefore creating a sustainable, natural, and ecological cycle of constant pollination.

I believe all students should be aware of the FGCU Food Forest in hopes to expand it's future and to enlighten students of how easily possible it is to live and eat sustainably regardless of excuses.

Food Forest

             Sense of place; such a statement can be interpreted in an abundance of ways. To find a deeper understanding of my own sense of place, I walked around my current environment. Living in North Lake is much different than living in a house or apartment off campus. Everywhere I look I see a prominent focus on environmental importance.
             I started my exploration walking down the waterfront of North Lake. Immediately I noticed the almost excessive amount of Palmetto ferns (pictured below). As I kept walking down the lake I heard and saw multiple fish quickly breaking the surface of the water. I always knew there was wildlife in the lake but to disconnect from everything else and simply take time to appreciate it truly shows the extent of wildlife I take for granted while paddleboarding, wakeboarding, and simply enjoying my current backyard. I presumed by the time I made it back to my building I would have learned enough; to my surprise I felt inspired to finish my evening with a late night exploration of the nature trails. This was fascinating to say the least. As I entered the nature trail I was very nervous, there was hardly any moon light and I could barely see my palm before my eyes. The fear of the unknown dwelled in the back of my mind as I journeyed deeper into the unfamiliar terrain. Minutes later I realized my eyes had adjusted to the darkness and I could see everything clear as a bobcat with flawless night vision. My fear of the unknown had vanished and for a brief moment I legitimately felt as one with nature. It was at this moment that I understood my sense of place. I felt primal but I knew I as a human am THE keystone species in such an environment. I realized the impact I as a living organism leave on the environment and it was truly enlightening. After a few minutes of star gazing on the trail and simply taking in the whole experience, I returned to my dorm feeling the most "down to earth" I've felt in a while. I wouldn't be surprised if I make a similar spontaneous late night adventure soon.