RECENT EVENTS
November 5, 2022 – Calderon Pineland Preserve As part of the Pine Rockland Working Group conference, a collaborative volunteer event was held a Calderon Pineland Preserve. More than 100 volunteers joined Miami-Dade's Environmentally Endangered Lands Program at the Preserve, planting more than 1,500 rare plants that support butterfly species and other pollinators.
November 4, 2022 – Florida City Pineland Preserve As part of the Pine Rockland Working Group conference, a field trip was held at Florida City Pineland Preserve, where Alex Seasholtz and Tim Joyner from Miami-Dade County’s Environmentally Endangered Lands Program led groups (students from Advanced Achievers Academy) around the preserve showing the ongoing restoration efforts.
The Pine Rockland Initiative
What is the Pine Rockland Initiative?
The Pine Rockland Initiative was founded in 2005 with an emphasis on providing support to private owners of pine rocklands, especially for invasive plant control, with primary funding from the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). Over the years it has grown and evolved to become a multi-faceted program with many funders and collaborators including the FWS Coastal and Partners for Fish and Wildlife Programs, US DOD, Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, Miami-Dade County, Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens, The Nature Conservancy, Miami Beach Garden Club, NABA, private donors, and many more. The goal of the program is to restore and manage pine rockland fragments on public and private lands throughout the range of pine rocklands, including providing the thought leadership needed to move beyond "business as usual" and save this unique part of our natural heritage. One way to do this it through "expanding the footprint" of pine rocklands, including the restoration of fire-excluded pine rockland patches, as well as the restoration of pine rocklands that have been destroyed.
What is a Pine Rockland?
Pine Rocklands comprise a globally imperiled ecosystem that exists only in southern Florida and parts of the Bahamas. In South Florida, they are home to many rare plant and animal species, including 11 federally listed animals and 16 federally listed plants. Dozens of state-listed plants and regionally rare plants designated by IRC are also present. A typical pine rockland is characterized by limestone outcroppings, sometimes covered with sand, a canopy of South Florida Slash Pine, and diverse understory and groundcover layers including temperate, tropical, and endemic plants. In South Florida, intact pine rocklands have all but disappeared outside of Everglades National Park (ENP) in Miami-Dade County and parts of National Key Deer Refuge in the Florida Keys. Outside of ENP in Miami-Dade County, small patches, representing perhaps 2% of the original extent of pine rocklands within Miami-Dade County's urban corridor, are all that remain. Threats to remnant pine rockland patches include destruction, invasive plants and animals, fire suppression, and dumping.
For more information on the history of pine rocklands and guidelines for planting a pine rockland in Miami-Dade County click here.
How can I help?
We want YOU to be a part of the Pine Rockland Initiative! If you are interested in volunteering at one of our public restoration events or interested in attending one of our workshops or training events, sign up for our monthly newsletters to get up to date information. If you know of a school group, garden club, or volunteer group that you think would be a good fit with this program, let us know! If you know of a business that would like to support our program financially by becoming a sponsor, contact us for our sponsorship information.
Email pri@regionalconservation.org or call 305-247-6547 and either Alex or Michelle will provide more information or how to get involved!Want to keep up to date on our activities?
SOME PRI ACTIVITIES
On-Site Restoration Consulting
Rare Species Surveys
Vegetation Monitoring
Invasive Plant Removal
Native Hardwood Reduction
Development of New Restoration Techniques
Long Term Monitoring
Public Speaking and Outreach
Watch Chief Conservation Strategist, George Gann, present The Pine Rockland Initiative: Biodiversity, Restoration, and Thinking Big to Save a Globally Imperiled Ecosystem
Our Multi-Organization Resource Directory is Coming Soon
PINE ROCKLAND NATIVES
Poisonwood, Florida Poisontree
Metopium toxiferum
Atala (Eumaeus atala) eggs on Coontie (Zamia integrifolia)
Zamia integrifolia
Havana skullcap Scutellaria havanensis
Black Racer
Coluber constrictor
About IRC
Since 1984, IRC has been dedicated to the protection, restoration, and long-term management of biodiversity. As a South Florida-based nonprofit, we aim to prevent regional extinctions of rare plants, animals, and ecosystems. For more than a quarter of a century, we have worked to preserve South Florida's natural heritage through partnerships with local, state, and federal agencies, and nonprofit organizations. We believe in the value of our regional ecosystems and remain committed to their conservation. Please join us in this endeavor!