Sarasota News | Mysuncoast.com and ABC 7: Environment

Audubon urges people to protect beach birds

SIESTA KEY, Fla. (AP) — Audubon Florida is asking beach-going Floridians to help protect coastal birds by leaving personal fireworks at home a…

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Pinellas County has first mosquito virus case

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — The first case of the mosquito-borne chikungunya illness has been confirmed in Pinellas County.

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Care with fishing gear urged after dolphin's death

SARASOTA COUNTY, Fla. -- Marine experts are reminding people to look out for wildlife while on the water this 4th of July weekend and year-round.

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Wildlife officials to review manatee status change

MIAMI (AP) — Federal wildlife officials are moving forward with a status review of the manatee following a petition from a libertarian legal g…

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Manatee County beach recognized for consistent clean water tests

MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. -- A national organization has named Manatee County's Coquina Beach among the country's "35 Superstar Beaches", based on …

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A lure for divers: Fighter jets as artificial reef

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Two gutted fighter jets are now at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico off Panama City Beach as part of an artific…

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Rare tarpon caught off of Anna Maria Island

SARASOTA, Fla. - You don’t have to be an avid fisherman to appreciate what Captain Clark Wright, his mate and angler reeled into their boat of…

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Controversial snake ban moving forward

SARASOTA, Fla. -- Back in 2010, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed adding nine species of giant snakes as injurious reptiles under th…

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US declares wood storks no longer endangered

TOWNSEND, Ga. (AP) — The American wood stork, a bird scientists once feared would be extinct by the year 2000, is getting a status upgrade 30 …

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Beach bird nests destroyed by motorcycle on Siesta Key

SIESTA KEY, Fla. -- A motorcycle has torn through a protected species habitat on Siesta Key, according to wildlife officials.

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Coast Guard cleans 1,000-pound tar mat from Gulf

PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) — A U.S. Coast Guard pollution investigation team is working to cleanup a 1,000-pound tar mat from the bottom of the Gulf…

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Cousteau's underwater visitors include painter

ISLAMORADA, Fla. (AP) — Fabien Cousteau's ongoing underwater living experiment in the Florida Keys has included filmmaking, online chats with …

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'Corpse plant' in full bloom at Selby

SARASOTA, Fla. -- Botany staff at Marie Selby Gardens in Sarasota got smelly surprise Friday when one of their two rare Corpse Plants bloomed…

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Rare 'corpse plant' flowers close to blooming at Selby

SARASOTA, Fla. -- A pair of plants with blooms as rare as their odor is pungent are getting closer to blooming at Marie Selby Botanical Gardens in Sarasota.

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Mote reminds people to be aware of sea turtles during nesting season

SARASOTA, Fla. -- Many of us have our favorite beach that we like to visit during the summer. Sea turtles have their favorites too. They retur…

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Turtle recovering after being found with sharp object in shell

SARASOTA, Fla. -- A loggerhead turtle that was rescued by the Coast Guard last weekend appears to be recovering.

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Two rare 'corpse plant' flowers expected to bloom this month

SARASOTA, Fla. -- A pair of plants with blooms as rare as their odor is pungent is expected to make a short-lived appearance this month in the…

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Gov. Scott responds to crticism over investment in energy company

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) - Environmentalists are targeting Gov. Rick Scott for his investment in a French energy company that is involved in oil…

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Gov. Scott's stake in oil company questioned

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Environmentalists are targeting Gov. Rick Scott for his investment in a French energy company that is involved in oil…

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Captain satisfies life-long goal in swim with whale shark

SARASOTA COUNTY, Fla. -- A Venice scuba diving charter captain says he had the opportunity of a lifetime when he saw a whale shark swimming off the coast of Venice.

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Mote studying dead dolphins after stranding on Fort Myers Beach

FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) — Two Atlantic spotted dolphins are dead after becoming stranded on Fort Myers Beach.

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FWC wants to know: Have you seen these birds?

SARASOTA, Fla. -- The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is asking for the public’s help in locating three species of rare bird…

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Wildlife officers try to rescue trapped manatee

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Wildlife officers are trying to rescue a manatee stranded in a St. Petersburg spillway.

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Sharks tagged off Cape Cod still in Gulf waters off Suncoast

SARASOTA, Fla. -- Two great white sharks with satellite transponders remain in the gulf waters off the Suncoast.

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Suncoast fishermen watch as shark eats tarpon

MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. -- Some local fisherman competing in a tarpon tournament didn't get the winning catch, but got some scary video instead.

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Mating manatees attract a crowd on Lido Key

SARASOTA, Fla. -- Beachgoers on Lido Beach Saturday got a front row seat to a manatee mating ritual.

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Global celebration of World Environment Day brought to Sarasota

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Federal lawsuit filed to stop toxic water pollution leaking into Apalachicola River

Apalachicola, Fla. (WTXL) -- Earthjustice is filing a federal lawsuit on behalf of three conservation groups to stop toxic water pollution tha…

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Talk on EPA's National Contingency Plan Thursday

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - In the wake of the BP Deepwater Horizon Disaster, the Environmental Protection Agency is preparing to update their …

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Saturday evening storm photos

TALLAHASSEE (WTXL) -- Active weather moved across the Big Bend Saturday evening. Associated with these storms, we saw frequent lightning and p…

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Whale shark sighted off Anna Maria Island

MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. -- Some boaters off the coast of Manatee County caught a rare glimpse of a gentle giant recently.

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Wildlife rescue warns of using outdoor glue traps

BRADENTON, Fla. -- A young screech owl rescued in Manatee County is receiving medical care after the owl was found stuck to a glue trap that a…

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Florida Audubon encourages residents to protect nesting shorebirds this holiday weekend

BRADENTON BEACH, Fla. - For many Floridians on the Suncoast, Memorial Day weekend is a time to grill out, play games and enjoy the beach. But …

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The World Would Not Be The Same Without Everglades National Park

The world would not be the same without Everglades National Park! That is not just the opinion of millions of people from all over the world w…

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Four Florida beaches on Dr. Beach's 2014 list

SARASOTA , Fla. -- Dr. Beach has released his 2014 list of top-10 beaches in the United States, but no Suncoast area beaches made the list.

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Schaus swallowtail breeding program continues

HOMESTEAD, Fla. (AP) — University of Florida scientists are taking a captive breeding program for a rare butterfly back into the field.

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Tracking Katharine the great white shark off the Florida coast

SARASOTA, FL- In recent months Great White Sharks have been tracked by researchers in the Gulf of Mexico.

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VISIT FLORIDA and Google launch "beach view" website

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) – VISIT FLORIDA and Google are giving “couch surfing” a whole new meaning.

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2014 bay scallop season opens early in Florida

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - Florida Governor Rick Scott announced today that the 2014 bay scallop season will open three days earlier, on Satur…

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State park thinning out trees to preserve bird habitat

OSPREY, Fla. -- Crews at Oscar Scherer State Park are finishing a tree clearing project that will eventually benefit the native scrub jay.

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Video: Rare sea turtle seen nesting during the day in Venice

VENICE, Fla. – The 2014 sea turtle nesting season is under way, and the rarest of all sea turtle species has already been seen nesting on a Venice Beach.

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Black bear mother fatally hit by car on I-75 in Naples

NAPLES, Fla. -- Troopers say a female black bear was killed by a car early Tuesday morning on Interstate 75, and its two cubs were also seen a…

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Heartless, Painful, Beautiful: Wildlife of Florida's Biscayne National Park

BISCAYNE NATIONAL PARK, Fla. -- One truly amazing thing about national parks and Biscayne National Park in particular, is their ability to sur…

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Huge catch turns into rescue mission for shark pups

VENICE, Fla. – It’s no secret that some large sharks roam the Gulf waters off the Suncoast. But an angler’s recent encounter with an estimated…

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Pics: Baby giraffes, tamandua born at Busch Gardens

TAMPA, Fla. -- The baby boom continues at Busch Gardens in Tampa, and just in time for Mother’s Day, with the births of a Southern tamandua an…

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Was this costly eco-passage really necessary?

LEON COUNTY (WTXL) – Two 1 mile-long concrete walls line U.S. 27. Beneath, tunnels connect Lake Jackson and Little Lake Jackson. This allows …

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Rare 'goblin shark' caught off Fla. coast

A shrimper caught this rare goblin shark - only the second member of its species ever caught in the Gulf of Mexico - in the waters off Key West in April.