Ellie Whitney grew up in New York City, was educated at Harvard and Washington universities, and has lived in Tallahassee since 1970. She has taught at Florida State and Florida A & M universities Bruce Means grew up in Alaska, has a Ph. D. in biology from the Florida State University, and is president of the Coastal Plains Institute and Land Conservancy Anne Rudloe has a Ph. D. in biology from Florida State University. She and her husband Jack Rudloe live in Panacea, Florida, where they run the Gulf Specimen Marine Laboratory.

Before 1947, when Marjory Stoneman Douglas named The Everglades a "river of grass," most people considered the area worthless. She brought the world's attention to the need to preserve The Everglades. In the Afterword, Michael Grunwald tells us what has happened to them since then. Grunwald points out that in 1947 the government was in the midst of establishing the Everglades National Park and turning loose the Army Corps of Engineers to control floods--both of which seemed like saviors for the Glades. But neither turned out to be the answer. Working from the research he did for his book, The Swamp, Grunwald offers an account of what went wrong and the many attempts to fix it, beginning with Save Our Everglades, which Douglas declared was "not nearly enough." Grunwald then lays out the intricacies (and inanities) of the more recent and ongoing CERP, the hugely expensive Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan.

Taken from the earlier book Priceless Florida (and modified for a stand-alone book), this volume discusses Florida's wetlands, including interior wetlands, seepage wetlands, marshes, flowing-water swamps, beaches and marine marshes, and mangrove swamps. Introduces readers to the trees and plants, insects, mammals, reptiles, and other species that live in Florida's unique wetlands ecosystem, including the Virginia iris, American white waterlily, cypress, treefrogs, warblers, and the Florida black bear. Next in series > > See all of the books in this series

Concise and heavily illustrated introduction to lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, springs; aquatic caves; estuarine waters and seafloors' submarine meadows, sponge, rock, and reef communities; and the Gulf and Atlantic Ocean

Discover the story of the land of Myakka. This book takes you into shady hammocks of twisted oaks and up into aerial gardens, down the wild and scenic river, and across a variegated canvas of prairies, piney woods, and wetlandsall located in Myakka River State Park, the largest state park in Florida. Each adventure tells the story of a unique facet of this wilderness area and takes you into secret places it would take years to discover on your own. Whether you're visiting the park for the first time or have frequented the area since childhood, the adventures described here are sure to awaken your primitive instincts to explore the unknown. If you return to the same places at different times of the year, you'll find enough adventures to last a lifetime. You'll never be one of those people who asks, "Whats there to do in the park today?"

The deepest and largest known springs in the world are found here in Florida. The photographs are the result of hundreds of hours under water. This new edition is completely updated to serve as a guide to Florida's many spring parks and their inhabitants. Vital for canoeists, kayakers, divers, snorkelers, and visitors.

Dangerous Sea Life of the West Atlantic, Caribbean, and Gulf of Mexico is a guide for accident prevention and first aid. There are sections on: Species that bite, such as sharks, barracuda, moray eels, alligators and crocodiles, octopi, and sea lice Species that sting, such as jellyfish, stingrays, fire worms, fire coral, cone shells, sea urchins, and bony fishes Species dangerous to eat, from cholera, paralytic shellfish poisoning, red tide, parasites, and ciguatera Pests that harm swimmers, such as various algae, bacteria, and parasites Toxic mucus-secreting species, such as sponges, fishes, and marine toads Fish beak and processing injuries, such as flying fish, billfish, swordfish, and shark skin Human/animal interactions at modern tourist attractions

Do you know: How many acres of Florida's remaining natural areas have become infested with non-native plant species? Where is Estero Bay? What is the penalty for violating federal manatee protection laws? What river disappears underground in O'Leno State Park and re-emerges above ground in River Rise State Park? Learn this and more in this fun-filled guide to the little-known facts of Florida.

A plague is spreading throughout the Florida Everglades. The nonnative Burmese python—one of the largest snakes on the planet—is now known to be reproducing freely in the shallow waters of the famed River of Grass. Over the past decade, thousands of pythons have made themselves at home across the landscape. And though scientists work feverishly to learn as much as possible about this unprecedented invader, methods of control remain elusive. Many questions remain in the wake of this troubling discovery. How far north might Burmese pythons venture from the Everglades wilderness? What might their presence mean for the countless birds and mammals—some of them endangered—with which south Florida has become synonymous? And does history seem poised to repeat itself as new, large reptiles are discovered to be thriving in the area's favorable climate? An Everglades naturalist describes how the story unfolding in the Florida Everglades provides new opportunities to revisit our understanding of wilderness and man's place within it.

Concise and heavily illustrated introduction to high pine grasslands, flatwoods and prairies, interior scrub, hardwood hammocks, rocklands, and caves, and beach dunes.