Cypress Cove Conservancy Team Members
BOARD OF DIRECTORS:
- President ~ Bobbie Lee Davenport
- Vice President ~ Patty Whitehead
- Secretary ~ Janet Weisberg
- Treasurer ~ Amy Taylor
- Media Consultant ~ Silvia Casabianca
ADVISORY COMMITTEE:
- Mike Barry
- Edwin M. Everham III
- David W. Ceilley
- Jim Beever
- Brooke Hollander - Environmental consultant
WHY ARE WE DOING THIS?
Wildlife has nowhere to go
For many years, we have been witnesses to a very sad scenario: what was once wildlife habitat and "density reduction areas" have been rezoned for high-density residential use. The wildlife has nowhere to go as vast amounts of critical habitat areas are being destroyed at an alarming rate. It has become commonplace to hear of a panther (one of our precious endangered species) being killed on the roads. The Florida Black Bear (one of our formerly listed species) have so little habitat left that they are coming into developments that have encroached on what few uplands are still available.
So, we are taking action!
We have created the Cypress Cove Conservancy, a 501(c)3 non-profit with the main goal to purchase and preserve environmentally sensitive lands that are crucial for wildlife habitat in Southwest Florida. We are specially targeting lands that are known habitat for listed and endangered species. There are no other like organizations in the area.
We want to protect endangered species
Many don't know that panthers are Florida State's official animal. However, it's one of the most endangered species not only in Florida but also in the Earth. If they once populated our woodlands and swamps, they have been decimated since the European settlers conquered the Americas in the 1600s. In the past few decades, human activities have destroyed or degraded their habitat.
But not only the panthers have been victims of rezoning and high-density residential use. Human desire for land and raw materials, pollution of water and air and hunting are threatening the existence of turtles, sparrows, storks, manatees, crocodiles, woodpeckers, butterflies and Black Bears, among other creatures.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission provided “bear hunting opportunities” in 2015. This is killing the bears instead of relocating them; allowing hunters to kill the bears in their own habitat. We feel we have a responsibility to protect these animals and preserve their habitat, as every single being should have a right to live.
Rezoning has been threatening natural habitats
As more and more lands are rezoned for agricultural or construction purposes, larger amounts of natural habitats are disappearing upsetting the balance of these fragile ecosystems. It's just fair to grant uplands for these creatures to survive, otherwise very soon there will be no land left for them to go except into the swamps where they will perish.
The only other organization in the area that had a similar mission and was funded by the county, and wasn't soliciting the general public, is no longer funding land acquisition. That’s why we decided to embrace this cause and we have started soliciting the general public to raise funds.
We are joining forces with other environmental groups
We will be working closely with local environmental groups and identifying critical lands for purchase. We are working on listing critical parcels of lands that need to be acquired. We have already identified a specific piece of land, which will be targeted first. The funds raised with this campaign will go towards completing a down payment to secure the buying of this land. There has been an intention by the founders of Cypress Cove Conservancy to acquire the land for many years but funds have not been available to purchase it. It is a 200-acre land near the Collier County panther preserve. This land is inhabited by endangered animals and plant life with rare species living there and has been identified as an important land to preserve as it serves as a well-known wildlife crossing and habitat area. For health reasons the land owner and his family are motivated to sell his preserved land.
Mitigation credits do not solve the problem
There was a regional offsite mitigation area set aside near the Picayune Strand in the far reaches of Collier County, bordering the Everglades, so as developers destroyed lands they could pay mitigation credits to purchase lands elsewhere. This of course did not help the displaced wildlife in the areas they were destroying. The regional offsite mitigation area is now defunded and no longer exist as the government agency funding this area has decided to remove the program.
We are the last hope of bringing to life a viable way to preserve land, a lasting way to protect the much-needed habitat and a sure way to hold the lands in a permanent state of preservation.
The Naples Daily News August 2015 edition predicted that one million people would be living in Collier County by the year 2050 posing an even bigger burden on the habitats we're describing. If lands are to be preserved for the wildlife it must start now, and we are ready to take on the charge.
Here's a view of the property we are in the process of acquiring:
