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Volunteers Brave Storm To ID Critters At Camp Bayou

Photo by KEVIN HOWE

Volunteer Kelly Holland looks for critters along the banks of the Little Manatee River.

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By LOIS KINDLE The Tampa Tribune

The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 19, 2008

Updated:

RUSKIN - Dolly Cummings peered out the window of her Camp Bayou office Aug. 9, checking the skies for any sign of a letup. As volunteers pulled in, one by one, Mother Nature just wasn't cooperating.

"Despite all the rain, even thunder and lightning, the people from the Tampa Bay Estuary program showed up," Cummings said. "I was absolutely thrilled."

Cummings was hosting the Centennial Critter Count, an outdoor event aimed at finding and identifying at least 100 species of small mammals, reptiles and amphibians, birds and insects along the trails of the 160-acre nature preserve.

"The event actually had a twofold purpose," Cummings said. "First, it was to acknowledge the biodiversity of Camp Bayou, and to establish a base count to measure its health in the future. The other was to honor Ruskin's centennial."

Ruskin celebrated 100 years as a community Aug. 7.

The count was supposed to include more than three hours of hiking by 50 volunteers. The nasty weather actually discouraged some from coming, but 38 braved the storm, coming from as far away as Sarasota, Clearwater and Lakeland.

"They were real diehards," Cummings said.

The group was divided into teams, with each receiving a collection kit, ruler, plastic cast kit, garbage bag and survey sheets. Waiting for the rain to subside, they watched a slideshow on possible critters they might encounter. They were also provided field guides and nets.

Bill Henpges of Sarasota was the first to find a critter. It was a Southern toad that has come in out of the rain.

"I think we actually got out for a couple of hours between the showers," said Sue Croley of Gibsonton, who came with her husband, Bob Minthorn. "We found 22 to 23 different critters, mostly moths, butterflies and insects."

Croley said when the rain stopped intermittently, her group spotted several birds.

"It was well-worth going to," she said.

Ruskin resident Bob Igler thought so, too.

"I was very surprised to find so many insects and not as many animals," he said. "But that was probably weather related. I really learned a lot.

"It was fun to try and figure out what we were looking at," he said.

By noon, the rain had subsided and everyone returned for lunch.

"Our final count was 103 different species," Cummings said. "That number is preliminary, because we have a number of insects we couldn't identify."

Cummings said the mystery will be resolved in the fall, when snowbird George Shambaugh, a part-time entomologist, returns to the area.

"The Centennial Critter Count was a great opportunity for our volunteers to do something other than invasive plant removal or native species planting," said Nanette O'Hara, Tampa Bay Estuary's outreach coordinator. "We considered it one of our Give A Day For The Bay events, which we founded in 2001 and do eight or nine times a year at locations in Hillsborough, Pinellas and Manatee counties, the heart of the Tampa Bay watershed.

"I've worked with Dolly a number of times, and this was a great idea."

Reporter Lois Kindle can be reached at (813) 865-1553 or lkindle@tampatrib.com.

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