Wait, Slow Down. You Moved to Florida? And What’s this Archbold You Keep Mentioning?

Dear friends and family all around the world –

I’ve posted pictures and random snippets of stories during this, what was my first month and a half at the Archbold Biological Station in Venus, Florida, on this blog and on other social media. But what, you may ask, actually goes on here? Where is “here”? And what’s this “Archbold Biological Station” all about, anyway?

Well, I’ll tell you. Or, as per usual, I’ll show you.

Right, so… Florida?

Yep. I’ve swapped America’s Dairy Land for the Sunshine State. This is the Venus, located in the middle of orange grove and cattle country Central Florida. The Archbold Biological Station itself consists of roughly 9,000 acres of scrub and ranch land with a colorful history involving great and powerful oil tycoons, intrepid world adventurers, and finally us humble scientists. The Station has a great mix of people from all over the US and the world, with a diverse range of interests, skill sets and backgrounds, all coming together to study the habitats unique to this patch of Florida.

So that’s where I am, but what makes Archbold special?

The Lake Wales Ridge, on which the Station sits, forms a backbone of “higher” elevation running north to south down the middle of the peninsula. In the long ago past when ocean levels were higher, this ridge was the only part of the state that was above sea level. Consequently, islands of isolated habitats were formed that maintained their uniqueness once the oceans receded to their current levels. These rare natural areas are home to plants and animals found in very few, or no other, places on Earth.

The main labs at Archbold (Bird, Plant, Herp / Restoration Ecology, and Bug, to keep things simple) each study different, but overlapping, aspects of the Lake Wales Ridge. As a terrible oversimplification, here’s what people work on.

Florida Scrub Jays –

Plants and habitats (there’s a lot of different projects in the Plant lab…) –

Gopher Tortoises –

Indigo Snakes –

Fire Management –

Invasive Species –

Seasonal Ponds –

Restored Wetlands –

Grazing –

Arthropods –

And much, much more.

So, that skipped a lot (such as, what’s my place in all this?)… which is OK! There’s tons more information about Archbold at this website – http://www.archbold-station.org/ – and I’ll be writing more about each of these projects as I continue always to learn from others. That’s all for now, as it’s Saturday, and verging on my nap time. Holy crap I love not being in school.