Bonnie Cary (Naturalist -Land Acquisition and Management - County of Volusia) has provided us with a nice assortment of hikes in the Volusia county public lands (you're paying for the lands, let's use them) area. Follow this link to adventure.

October 2008 Event

The Pawpaw Chapter of the FL Native Plant Society is having a Fall Native Plant Sale & Workshop on Sunday, Oct. 5 from 10am to 4pm at Atlantic High School, 1250 Reed Canal Rd. in Port Orange.

Available for purchase are native shade trees, flowering shrubs, and groundcovers perfect for Central Florida.
Other items for purchase: field identification and landscape design guides, caterpillar and butterfly books, rain barrels and nature photography.
FREE seminars with speakers from Int'l Society of Arboriculture, Audubon, Nat'l Wildlife Federation, FNPS, Univ. of FL Master Gardeners, and more!
FREE children's crafts.
For more info call (386) 673-9543.

The attached flier includes a description of this event, as well as our Native Landscape Tour of Ormond Beach, to take place the following weekend.

Thank you!

Elizabeth Flynn, Publicity Co-Chair
Pawpaw Chapter Plant Sale
4 Maryann Terrace
Ormond Beach, FL 32174

October 2008 Event

Greyhound Pets Of America, Daytona Beach Pays Tribute To Donnadine

SEVAS member, Donnadine Miller, who passed away April 7, 2008 is being remembered by another organization of which she was a working member. In fact, Donnadine Miller was voted "Volunteer of the Year" last December by GPA, Daytona Beach in recognition of the work she did there.

One of her volunteer activities was to head up the annual 5K Run and Pet Walk. She, as she did with every job she undertook, went at it full bore. The race was highly successful.

From now on this race will be known as the Donnadine Miller Memorial 5K Run and Pet Walk.
You need not be a runner, or a pet owner, to participate in this yearly event. You may just want to enjoy the walk around Rima Ridge Tract at Tiger Bay State Forest, Daytona Beach.

Full information on the October 11, 2008 event will be found by following these links:
5K Run - Pet Walk

Florida scrub-jay epidemic?

Researchers have their fingers on the pulse of scrub-jays at Archbold Biological Station. They conduct monthly censuses to track the survival and movements of each individual.

During the most recent fall census, they found high mortality and are investigating whether it is disease-related. They are busy taking blood and mosquito samples and asking researchers elsewhere with marked populations to check to see if those areas are also experiencing high mortality.

Reed Bowman, Associate Research Biologist, says it "may be associated with a dry spring followed by wet summer and fall and the subsequent increase in mosquitoes that might transmit disease to Florida scrub-jays.

Please keep an eye out for obviously sick scrub-jays. If you find a dead bird with no obvious cause of mortality (i.e hit by a car, killed by a cat), please freeze the bird as quickly as possible and have them contact me ASAP." He is at Reed Bowman or 863-465-2571 if you do find a dead bird.