With the Wild Things: Ding Darling

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|a With the Wild Things: Ding Darling |h [electronic resource].

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|a Ft. Myers, Florida : |b Whitaker Center in the College of Arts and Sciences, Florida Gulf Coast University.

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|a 5 podcasts, approximately 1 minute each in length

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|a Please contact the owning institution for licensing and permissions. It is the users responsibility to ensure use does not violate any third party rights.

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|a Source: Ding Darling 1 Length of Segment: 00:01:12 Hi, I'm Dr. Jerry Jackson, out with the wild things. Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island in southwest Florida is one of the crown jewels of the National Wildlife Refuge system. It's named for J.N. "Ding" Darling, a Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist who championed conservation causes in the 1930s, helped create the Duck Stamp Program with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and became a founder of the National Wildlife Federation. He later lived on Captiva Island. The more than 6,000 acres of Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge embraced habitats of Sanibel Island and tidal waters of San Carlos Bay. Mangrove islands, wetlands surrounded by dikes that were built years ago for mosquito control, some fresh water and upland habitats, and a small area of dune habitat on the gulf-side of Sanibel create a paradise for wildlife. The rich, shallow, coastal waters make wading birds, such as roseate spoonbills, a specialty at Ding Darling. Check tide schedules to see the greatest diversity of birds at Ding Darling; wading birds gather to take advantage of the riches of the estuary at low tide.

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|a Source: Ding Darling 2 Length of Segment: 00:01:08 Hi, I'm Dr. Jerry Jackson, out with the wild things. One of the birds most sought at Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island in southwest Florida is the roseate spoonbill. This pink relative of ibises and storks nest to the south in the Everglades and Florida Keys. But it's a regular visitor to Ding Darling and sometimes nests along Florida's west coast. The beauty of the spoonbill's plumage is matched by the bizarreness of its bill; six inches long and an inch wide at the base, it expands to nearly two inches forming the characteristic spoon tip. But this spoon isn't for dipping, nor is it for straining. Think of it as a pair of broad-tipped tongs. Broad tips are efficient for grabbing tiny crabs, two to three inch long fishes and other creatures of tidal shallows. Lacking the probing bill of an ibis or spearing bill of a heron, the roseate spoonbill requires habitats with extensive shallows and high populations of fishes and shellfishes. There it's a grabber, swinging its head from side to side in search of a meal.

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|a Source: Ding Darling 3 Length of Segment: 00:01:07 Hi, I'm Dr. Jerry Jackson, out with the wild things. Almost everywhere you look along Wildlife Drive at Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island, you can see red mangrove: the low, smooth, reddish-barked, spreading tree that seems to perch spider-like on dozens of gracefully arched prop roots at its base. Prop roots often branch as they reach down, stilt-like into brackish waters of the estuary. Prop roots of a red mangrove help hold the tree in place against tidal surges and help the tree gain oxygen. They reduce shoreline erosion and contribute to the formation of new land. Prop roots provide hiding places for young fishes and shellfishes while trapping decaying leaves and other organic matter that nourishes the mangrove community. They also provide avenues to food at low tide and safety at high tide for the angular periwinkle snail and hermit crabs. Islands created by mangroves are attractive to nesting herons and egrets who find safety from predators and a home with food nearby.

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|a Source: Ding Darling 4 Length of Segment: 00:01:12 Hi, I'm Dr. Jerry Jackson, out with the wild things. You may know periwinkles as flowers used for a ground cover, but there are also animals called periwinkles: snails that make their home in tidal flats. The angular periwinkle, sometimes called mangrove periwinkle, is abundant at Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge and at other red mangrove habitats in South Florida. This inch-and-a-quarter long snail has a cone-shaped, bluish-white to buff colored shell adorned with spiral grooves and spiraling rows of dark dots. The angular periwinkle lives on the underside of the prop roots that give red mangroves something of a spider-like appearance. It moves up and down a root with the tide, spending most of its time above water. The habitat of the angular periwinkle is defined by its need to reach food while avoiding predators. This periwinkle feeds an algae and muck exposed at low tide. It spends most of its life out of water but within a few inches of it, easy commuting distance. By staying out of the water, it avoids being eaten by fishes. By moving a few inches above the surface, it's out of reach of hungry blue crabs.

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|a Source: Ding Darling 5 Length of Segment: 00:01:13 Hi, I'm Dr. Jerry Jackson, out with the wild things. The focus at Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island is usually on wading birds and creatures of the mangrove forest. But look up and you'll often find a master of the skies and waters: the osprey. Ospreys are the fishermen among hawks and are found around the world. At Ding Darling, they can be found year-around. Once declining as a result of pesticide and heavy metal pollution, osprey numbers are once again growing as we have reduced pollution problems. Increases in osprey populations are also due to help we've given them by providing artificial nest sites. Watch for their nests on tall poles with platforms on top at Ding Darling. Ospreys have many adaptations for capturing fish: a dark line through the eye reduces glare from the water, sharp talons and spiny scales on their feet help them grip fish they capture, and a sharp beak allows them to tear a fish into bite-sized morsels. Populations of ospreys at Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge and elsewhere in Florida continue to serve as living barometers, indicating the health of aquatic ecosystems.

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|a Added automatically.

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|a J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge (Fla.).

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|a Dr. Jerry Jackson.

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|t Ding Darling 1

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|t Ding Darling 2

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|t Ding Darling 3

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|t Ding Darling 4

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|t Ding Darling 5

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|a dpSobek.

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|a Everglades Digital Library: Reclaiming the Everglades.

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|a With the Wild Things.

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|a dpSobek |c Everglades Digital Library: Reclaiming the Everglades

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|a Everglades Digital Library: Reclaiming the Everglades