The Calusa Herpetological Society Of Southwest Florida

Thursday, August 3, 2006  - 7:00 pm

SPEAKER & TOPIC :   Tonight Mike Hammond will share his experiences of running a Drift Fence Herp Survey on the Babcock Wildlife Management Area in southern Charlotte County, Florida.  Mike signed on in 2004 to conduct the one-year project for the Florida Wildlife and Conservation Commission, which has been surveying all the wildlife management areas of the state for the past decade.  180 traps were set in 15 arrays across different habitats to sample the herp life on the 65,000 acres.  Checking every trap 2 or 3 times per week yielded dozens of species, some of which might never have been detected except by this method.  Mike will show you many of them, and just what it’s like to do this kind of field survey work over a year’s time.

MEETING SITE : In Ft. Myers, Florida at the Calusa Nature Center , near Colonial Blvd. (S. R. 884) and Interstate 75. Get off I-75 at exit #136 (old exit #22) and go west (towards the coast) on 884 (Colonial Blvd.) for one-half mile, then turn right at the first traffic light onto Ortiz Ave., and then left into the Nature Center after only one-quarter mile. The Iona House meeting site is an older dark green house located to the left (as you enter the grounds) at the rear of the complex, back near where the school busses are parked.  The meeting opens at 7:00 pm, and the speaker usually starts no later than 7:15 pm.  Non-members must pay $3.00 at the door to attend the meeting. Click HERE for a map to the meeting site.  After each meeting, all attendees are invited to join "the core" for an informal nightcap at RJ Gator's Restaurant / Sports Bar on Colonial Blvd. where we usually gather following meetings which end at 8:30 pm.

WHO'S INVITED ? You are! Anyone with an interest in any aspect of herpetology or herpetoculture is welcome to attend, learn, and exchange their experiences with our friendly membership. Come out to meet others who keep, breed or study reptiles and amphibians, and let them share their fascination with you. We average 35 – 70 people attending every meeting.

Cookies and cold soda, a nightly raffle of live herps, herp products, and books follow each speaker's talk, and lots of herp camaraderie, gossip, and fun can be counted upon at all meetings !

For more info , call (239) 728-2390 or (239) 481-3525 or  EMAIL: info@calusaherp.org