From the President’s Desk

ANNUAL By Cheryl Cummins

MEMBERSHIP .

As Joanna Taylor mentioned in the Refuge Report, this past year

RENEWAL has been trying for all of us in the wake of Hurricanes Frances
and Jeanne, not to mention the stress from this year’s hurricanes;
With all the events of however, I think we are back on track.
the past year, we know
how easy it was to In a few short months, we will begin planning the next Pelican
forget things. So, here’s Island Wildlife Festival to be held on Saturday, March 11th. As
a friendly reminder that always, we need volunteers to help with pre-planning and, most
all memberships expired important, the day of the event. If you and/or any organization
in April of 2005 and you belong to would like to help out, please call Joanna Taylor at
need to be renewed for (772) 562-3909, ext. 258.
the 2005-2006 year. And last, I want to thank David Cox for the excellent job he did as
We urge you to take the President this past year and know he will do as well as Secretary
time NOW to renew this year.
your membership, so we
can continue to maintain
and improve Pelican UPCOMING CALENDAR OF EVENTS
Island National Wildlife
Refuge. If you have any Monday, October 24, 2005 -7:30 pm – General Meeting
questions regarding Monday, January 23, 2006 – General Meeting*
your membership, Saturday, March 11, 2006 – Pelican Island Wildlife Festival –
please call Walt Riverview Park, Sebastian
Stieglitz at (772) 663- Sunday, March 12, 2006 – Pelican Island Wildlife Festival
9750. (RAINDATE)
Monday, April 24, 2006 – Annual/General Meeting*
Monday, June 26, 2006 – General Meeting*
Monday, October 23, 2006 – General Meeting*

*All General Meetings starting in 2006 will be held at 7:00 pm

at the North Indian River County Library that is located at 1001
Sebastian Boulevard (C.R. 512) in Sebastian.

Pelican Island Preservation Society, INC. --- Pelican Flyer -- October 2005 1
Refuge Report July, we welcomed our new Office Assistant, Fran
Breedlove, who came to us from our Northeast
By Joanna Taylor, Refuge Ranger Region’s Realty Office.
It has been too long since we last communicated to Ongoing Upland Habitat Restoration
you about Refuge happenings. So, I will try to Thanks to Indian
condense as much as I can in this issue. Before I River County and
begin though, we’d all like to extend our utmost Florida DEP, the
gratitude to the volunteers that helped us coordinate habitat restoration
and conduct another successful Pelican Island directly north of
Wildlife Festival this March. A festival summary is the Pelican Island
included in this newsletter. Viewing Area
(Phase 1A) was
Hurricane Repairs completed in
We are just beginning the work of hurricane repairs December 2004
needed from last year. Next year, we will begin after the vendor
construction of a new maintenance facility east of stood up the trees
Jungle Trail. This facility will replace the two pole blown down by the
barns destroyed in the hurricanes and will improve hurricanes. This
our heavy equipment storage and security, as well restoration
as serve as our maintenance shop. In addition, we included removal
are working with a contractor to repair the torn up of the citrus trees,
roofs on the kiosk, shelter, and observation tower at creating four new
the Pelican Island Viewing Area. ponds and planting
native shrubs and
Staff Changes trees. Many
It seems when the hurricanes swooped in and took waterfowl and
some of our facilities and altered habitat, something wading birds
came in behind them and took half of our staff. welcomed the
That’s right, between December 2004 and February ponds this past
2005, we lost half of our staff to other opportunities migratory season.
around the country. Our Refuge Biologist, Mark Much exotic plant
Graham, moved to Fort Collins, Colorado to work control is needed
for the National Park Service. Our Office Assistant, on this site and the
Tommie True, moved to Reno, Nevada to work for Refuge has begun
a National Fish Hatchery. And our Biological monthly volunteer
Technician, Mark Ploski took a fire fighter position workdays, in
at Ocala National Forest. All three of these partnership with
individuals deserve our heartfelt gratitude for their both the Nature
dedication and hard work during our Refuge’s Conservancy and
busiest time in its history. Brevard County EEL’s program, to try to keep up
with it. Please contact us if you are interested in
With a staff of just three this year, we have found it helping us.
extremely difficult to keep up with all the work that
abounds at both Pelican Island and Archie Carr The old citrus grove east of Jungle Trail (Phase 2) is
Refuges. Our situation is finally improving. In scheduled for upland restoration next year. We are
June, we hired a seasonal (through November) looking for volunteers to help with exotics control
biological technician, Jennifer Lorenzo, to finish up and assisting with the archaeological survey before
the sea turtle surveys at the Archie Carr Refuge. In the restoration work begins.

Pelican Island Preservation Society, INC. --- Pelican Flyer -- October 2005 2
Estuarine Marsh Restoration
The tidal restoration on the tract directly south of
the Pelican Island Viewing Area (Phase 1B) has
been designed and will be completed by the end of
this year. This site fringes the Indian River Lagoon
and will be restored to estuarine marsh.
Saving Pelican Island
In partnership with St. Johns River WMD and
Florida Inland Navigation District, additional sand
and oyster shell will be added to the shoreline of
Pelican Island this fall to address the erosion
problem that has plagued the island. A helicopter
will be utilized to fill in a 1-acre eroded area on the
north and west shorelines. Following that, staff and
volunteers from PIPS and the Marine Resources
Council will plant smooth cordgrass and
mangroves. Please contact us, if you are interested
in helping.
Mangrove Island Restoration
We have received special funding to remove exotic
plants from about 60 acres of mangrove islands
south of Pelican Island, including Paul’s Island,
Nelson Island, Preachers Island.
Volunteer Opportunities
To find out how you can help the Refuge through
volunteering your time, please call Joanna Taylor at
(772) 562-3909 ext 258. We desperately need your
help.
New Educational Panels Coming to Trail
The current, temporary educational panels along the
Centennial Trail will be replaced this fall with
permanent panels. These panels were made
possible through a National Fish and Wildlife
Foundation grant with Wild Birds Unlimited. The
content has been revised, the illustrations improved
and additional panels have been added. New panels
will also be placed in the kiosk at the Orientation
Area parking lot (where the restrooms are located).
We can’t wait for you to see them!
Pelican Island Nesting Report
Roseate spoonbills attempted to nest on Pelican
Island this summer but it appears that they were not
successful. Spoonbills have not successfully nested
on Pelican Island since 1858. The island saw the
annual return of American woodstorks this spring,
but they too failed to nest successfully. It was an
unusually quiet year on Pelican Island.
Pelican Island Preservation Society, INC. --- Pelican Flyer -- October 2005
Wildlife Festival A Success!
By David Cox
Our 2005 Pelican Island Wildlife Festival was
another resounding success! Many volunteers and
community supporters worked hard so that
thousands of folks could enjoy a fun-filled day with
great exhibits, food, music, boat and kayak
excursions, melodrama, learning, and lots of
visiting with friends old and new. We want to thank
everyone who pitched in, along with our wonderful
vendors, and, of course, our very special sponsors,
who made it all possible.
Of special note was this year’s first-ever 5K Run for
the Refuge, which was a smash hit thanks to the
tireless efforts of Denise Leeming and her team of
fit workers! Rich Mermer again managed to create a
thoroughly enjoyable musical ambiance for the day.
Wildlife held center stage alongside the ever-
amazing Bruce Dangerfield, Ilka Daniel, and Jerry
Loll. Paul Tritaik led the soon-to-be discovered
Pelican Island Players into the past with the Feather
Wars. Meanwhile, Chris Pinson (Sebastian River
Boat Tours) and Cheryl Cummins (Kayaks, etc.)
gave glimpses of Pelican Island up-close. Bob
Montanaro organized and presented a photography
contest that has grown steadily in quality each year,
and is now remarkable for a community of any size.
Our small, but spirited Refuge staff (notably Takako
Hashimoto, Joanna Taylor, and Paul Tritaik) were
joined by many others from the USFWS South
Florida Ecological Services Office in Vero, who
helped in ways too numerous to detail. Lynn and
Walt Stieglitz, and Darlene Halliday and her lovely
husband, held down the PIPS tent (almost literally)
all day long...with able assistance from various
others including Rachel Tritaik. Jeff Luther, Ilka
Daniel and Bruce Dangerfield rode herd on the
exhibitors, while Steve Massey once again brought
together a tasty collection of food vendors. Sherry
Hamlin (KIRB) was up to her neck in recycling, as
usual. Sharon Mick, of the Sebastian River Medical
Center, provided peace of mind with a First Aid
Tent. Children of all ages had a blast with the
hands-on kids’ activities created by Debbie Berg
and Diana Digiacomo. And last, but first to
welcome our guests in the parking lots, Michael
Hughes and a team of crack parking attendants.
Continued on page 4……………………………..
3
 Pelican Island Preservation Society
P.O. Box 1903
Sebastian, FL 32978-1903

Wildlife Festival from page 3…………..

So many contribute so much to an event like this,
and I know that I have not recognized everybody
who helped, but thanks to you one and all!
Major Sponsor for the 2005 Wildlife Festival was
Atlantic Coast Construction & Development, and
we thank their owners, Joe Paladin and his whole
family. Additional Sponsors included: Sebastian
River Medical Center, Disney’s Vero Beach Resort,
Wal-Mart of Sebastian, Sebastian River Boat Tours,
Sebastian Adventure Charters, Kayaks, etc., The
Jungle Club, Sebastian Animal Hospital and Bird
Clinic, Florida Power & Light, Health South
Treasure Coast, Publix, and Harbor Federal Savings
Bank.
Community Partners for the Wildlife Festival were:
City of Sebastian, Indian River County Sheriff,
Keep Indian River Beautiful, Sebastian River Area
Chamber of Commerce, and the Pelican Island
Elementary Eco-Troop.
Pelican Island Preservation Society
Put next year’s Wildlife Festival date on your
MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION
calendar now:
Saturday, March 11, 2006, with Sunday the 12th as a Please check one:
rain-day. The Festival Planning Committee will
Student (under 18) - $5/yr.
begin meeting soon, and will be looking for
Individual - $10/yr.
volunteers to help with all aspects of planning and
Family (Joint) - $15/yr.
implementation. If you’re interested in making our
Contributing - $50/yr.
Festival even better, please call David Cox at 772-
Corporate / Business - $100/yr.
564-0540.
Supporting - $250/yr.

Life - $500
PIPS OFFICERS Name(s)___________________________________
President………………….Cheryl Cummins
Vice-President……………Steve Massey Company__________________________________
Treasurer…………………Walt Stieglitz Address___________________________________
Secretary…………………David Cox
City/State/Zip______________________________
Mark your calendar! Phone(Day)____________(Eve)________________
Monday, October 24, 2005 Email_____________________________________
PIPS General Meeting Send completed application & dues to
at the North County Library in PIPS Membership
Sebastian starting at 7:30 p.m.! P.O. Box 1903, Sebastian FL 32978-1903

Pelican Island Preservation Society, INC. --- Pelican Flyer -- October 2005 4