Natural Area Teaching
Laboratory
&
Thomas J. Walker Conservation Area
Annual Report 2011-2012
Jennifer Gillett-Kaufman
Chair, Natural Area Advisory Committee 2011-
34th Street
NATL-East
NATL-West
Agenda for 2011-12 update
• Burns and restarting tracts
• Nature trail update
– East trail- who has been helping, why didn’t they contact us?
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People counter update
Volunteer hours
Invasive species report
Additional activities
Fiscal report for FY 2011-12
Fiscal plan for FY 2012-13
Additional needs that could use funding
Burns, Restarting Tracts, Oaks
• April 2012 burn of north
public area pine and south
public area pine: next burn
in planning stage
• Accomplished the10 year
restart of tract A
• Accomplished the yearly
restart of tract B (west side of
the trail)
Nature Trail Update
• Improvements to NATL’s interpretive signs along
nature trails: addition of new photosigns
describing ecosystems, birds, reptiles and
insects
• Placement of a new 3x2 ft. insect trail sign,
funded by the Entomology Department’s
Ecotourism Program
• Over the summer, NATL hosted three long term
student volunteers we dubbed the Botany Interns
• Interns worked to maintain nature trails, develop
content for interpretive signs and enhance our
plant databases
Four Florida Ecosystems for You to Explore!
Nature Trails of UF’s Natural Area Teaching Laboratory (NATL)
Hammock Trail
(1/4 mi.) - Begins where Upland Pine and Old Field Trails
end
SEEP Trail (wetlands)
(3/4 mi.) - Follow signs or start at Natural Area
Park
Nature Trail Update- East Trail?
QR Nature Trail Update
• QR (Quick Response) Nature Trail NATL
OpCom members provided content for and
created QR-code-based signs for a self-guided
nature trail at the Natural Area Park SEEP
junction
• The information contained on the signs can also
be found on the NATL website
• We now have over 50 QR codes on signs in
NATL, some even direct users to video content
that we developed
People Counter Update
• Three TrailMaster units are installed at NATL’s
Academic, Cultural Plaza and Natural Area Park
(NAP) Entrances
• The Cultural Plaza Entrance has had a unit
installed since July 2010, initial technical
difficulties yielded unreliable data in the first few
months
• Two additional units were installed at the
Academic Entrance (June 2011) and Natural
Area Park Entrance (April 2012)
People Counter Update
• Because most NATL visitors are counted twice
(as they enter and exit), all counts are divided by
two in order to estimate the number of visitors
NATL receives
• Information gathered by the TrailMaster units
since December 2010 generates an estimate of
21,327 visitors to the Natural Area since then
• This is an underestimate because the three units
were not installed concomitantly
People Counter Update
Cultural Plaza
Academic entrance
NAP
1800
1600
Counts per month
1400
1200
1000
800
600
400
200
0
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
People Counter Update
• The high number of counts (>3000) logged at the
Cultural Plaza Entrance in April is the result of
FLMNH’s Earth Day event, which brought at
least 240 visitors to the Natural Area
• With the exception of April, the unit at the
Academic Entrance logged the most visitors so
far in 2012, likely a reflection of classes using the
NATL pavilion as a meeting or teaching area
Volunteer Update
• In 2012 NATL hosted several volunteer events
as well as four highly skilled long term volunteers
and two super volunteers
• Total hours so far for 2012- 659!
Month
January
February
March
April
June
Total
Event
MLK Day of Service
Ardisia control day
Ardisia control day
All-Greek Day of Service
Invasive control day
Volunteers
13
4
4
31
5
57
Hours
17.3
8.5
9
47.5
8.7
91
Volunteer
Sarah Allred
Michael Bainum
Sam Hart
Morgan Conn
Total
Hours
40.5
41
35.75
18.5
135.75
• NATL is very appreciative of its two super
volunteers, Tom Walker and Ken Prestwich, who
have each contributed 331 and 102.5 hours,
respectively
Control of Invasive Plants
• Cogongrass (Imperata cylindrica) Of 45 sites infested
in previous years, only 10 had cogongrass in
2012. More may be found next May, but currently
living cogongrass is known at only one site
• Skunkvine (Paederia foetida) During 2012 all
previously infested sites were periodically
inspected. No skunkvine was found
• Coral ardisia (Ardisia crenata) In 2009 most of
NATL’s 26 acres of hammock were heavily
infested. During the past winter, in a systematic
search, only 5 mature plants were found
Additional activities for 2011-12
• Partnered with the Harn to offer a course in NATL
– DIY EcoArt
• Produced 33 new photo signs
• Advertise NATL to departments and with the
Provosts Faculty Newsletter; record use of NATL
• Developed partnership with the Florida Foundation
to allow for online donations- $922 given to date
• Updated NATL website to conform with UF and
ADA
Additional activities for 2011-12
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Begin Use calendar for NATL Pavilion
Continue eradication of exotic species
Continue upland pine restoration (burning & planting)
Revise kiosk content and signs (as needed)
Added an Owl Box
Two new bike racks, one in NAP one by pavilion
Social networking to deliver news about NATL
On
find us at NATL.UF
You are invited to:
Share pictures taken in NATL
Comment on observations
Ask questions
Enjoy pictures of the area
Learn what others have seen
Follow us on
facebook search for:
The Natural Area Teaching
Lab
@UFNATL
NATL Minigrant 2011-12
• Inventory of the Herpetofauna- $500
– Brittany Grzybowski, CALS Undergraduate
– Dr. Steve Johnson, Associate Professor
• Wildlife Ecology & Conservation
• Despite the relatively low number of captures, this
limited study documented numerous species of
amphibians and reptiles
• Including several species documented at NATL for
the first time
Budget Report & Spending Plan
• Fiscal Plan for FY 2011-12 was followed
• Fiscal Plan for FY 2012-13 was unanimously
approved by the NAAC
• “[The chair of NAAC] … will annually submit a
spending plan to the Lakes, Vegetation and
Landscaping Committee (LVLC) for its approval,
and the Chair of NAAC will submit an annual
report about the uses of endowment funds to
LVLC.”
See handout
NATL Fiscal Plan for FY 2012-13
Funds available for 2012-13
Brought forward from 2011-12 $916
Correction of a 3-yr delay in an endowment payment!
Projected income for 2012-13
Provost
$6,000 Transfer completed
NATL endowment
$4,625 August 2012 estimate for 2012-2013 by Florida Foundation
Sum
$10,625
Grand Total
$11,541
Spending plan for 2012-13
Personnel*
Undergraduate TA
Control of invasives
Other spending
Miscellaneous expenses
Upland pine restoration
2000 NT fliers
2 minigrants @$500 each
Grand Total
$4,322
$2,640
Experienced help, 8 hrs/week (maintenance of nature trails)
Invasive specialist, 4 hrs/week
$2,200
$900
Efforts to restore 13 acres of longleaf pine ecosystem
$479
$1,000 Program attracts student proposals to fulfill NATL needs
$11,541
NATL improvement fund (from online donations) Brought forward from 2011-12 $921
*The Provost and the CALS Dean will each pay the stipend for
a NATL Graduate Teaching Assistant
Wish List
• Extend 110v AC to the pavilion and the NATL
shed
• Extend potable water service to the pavilion area
to provide access to water for an eyewash,
drinking, bottle filling, hand washing, and classrelated low-volume uses
• Two or more locking cupboards for class use
• Dog waste sanitation stations
See handout
NATL@ufl.edu
@UFNATL on Twitter
NATL.UF on Facebook