News of the Nature Coast of Florida

The victim of unchecked consumption of natural resources, Cedar Keys saw its stands of cedar trees stripped bare, its shellfish running out, and the killing of thousands of palms unable to survive the harvest of their heart buds.

These losses brought the demise of the sawmill on Atsena Otie Key (that supported Eberhard Faber's enormously successful pencil industry), the local fishing industry and a palmetto fiber brush factory in the same building where an oyster packing plant was forced out of business.

President Herbert Hoover came to the islands' rescue when he established Cedar Key National Wildlife Refuge in 1929 by naming three of the islands as a breeding ground for colonial birds, gaining its 13th island in 1997 when Atsena Otie Key came under refuge management. The local water management district headed off scheduled housing development on the island by purchasing it and entering a management agreement with Lower Suwannee NWR. Refuge islands range in size from 1 to 165 acres.

The outermost 165 acre Seahorse Key with its sand dune height of 52 feet makes it the highest elevation on Florida's west coast. Seahorse is also a prime nesting area where boats must stay a distance of 300 foot or more from March 1 through June 30. The island contains some of the largest heron, egret, brown pelican, and ibis nesting colonies in the south. More than 200,000 nesting birds have been recorded in past peak years including 8,000 white ibis. Current populations number 10,000 or more.

The interior upland forests of all the islands are closed to public entry. Cabbage palm, red bay, live oak, and laurel oak rise above understory plants including cherry laurel, saw palmetto, yaupon, wild olive, prickly pear, red cedar, and Spanish bayonet. Mangrove swamps and salt marshes occur intermittently in low areas where there is tidal flooding. Mammals are few because of scarce fresh water, but at least 10 reptile species share the compact living space with the birds, space that refuge supporters can be pleased to know is safe from further exploitation or over-visitation.

More information: Call (352) 493-0238

Web site: http://www.fws.gov/cedarkeys/