2008 Woodie Awards
800 acres of natural wetlands call UCF their home
Christine Harper
Issue date: 5/15/08 Section: News
Rex Menor jumps from the old, wooden boardwalk behind the Student Union to the soft, earthy ground of the cypress dome. Menor, a criminal justice sophomore, feels at home among the 100-year-old cypress trees and ferns.
Menor said he enjoys visiting cypress domes and other types of swamps because it reminds him of his past summers when he spent time as a camp counselor teaching children about wildlife in the Everglades. He also enjoys the visits because of his love for the environment.
On this quiet Sunday afternoon, Menor watches as two white ibises dive their heads into the retention pond as the soft-shell turtles swim past. He listens as the bullfrogs croak loudly in the distance. He laughs as the eastern grey squirrels scurry past him and rummage through garbage cans, hoping to find the remnants of a half-eaten sandwich or cheeseburger that students passing through the swamp might have left behind.
"I just love the squirrels on campus," Menor said. "They're extra aggressive."
But eastern grey squirrels are not the only animals living on UCF's campus. There are more than 45 species living on campus and some, like the gopher tortoise, which is currently listed as a threatened species west of the Mobile River in Alabama, are close to becoming endangered.
In addition to the animals, there are 800 acres of preserved, natural wetlands and forests on campus, which the 12-member staff of the Environmental Center is in charge of maintaining. The cypress dome behind the Student Union is one of two cypress domes the campus has vowed to protect. It is perhaps the best known because of the wooden boardwalk that juts across it, offering students an alternative way to travel from the union to other facilities.
"I love walking through [the cypress dome] on my way to class," political science senior Shay Kearney said. "It's the most beautiful place on campus."
Other swamps on campus are not as frequented as the Union's cypress dome. Hidden away in the northwestern parcel on campus is a large marsh surrounded by a titi strand. Titi strands are not commonly found as far south as Central Florida. This marsh is so well hidden by vegetation that only the residents of the nearby Tower apartments may be able to see it from the top floors.
Menor said he enjoys visiting cypress domes and other types of swamps because it reminds him of his past summers when he spent time as a camp counselor teaching children about wildlife in the Everglades. He also enjoys the visits because of his love for the environment.
On this quiet Sunday afternoon, Menor watches as two white ibises dive their heads into the retention pond as the soft-shell turtles swim past. He listens as the bullfrogs croak loudly in the distance. He laughs as the eastern grey squirrels scurry past him and rummage through garbage cans, hoping to find the remnants of a half-eaten sandwich or cheeseburger that students passing through the swamp might have left behind.
"I just love the squirrels on campus," Menor said. "They're extra aggressive."
But eastern grey squirrels are not the only animals living on UCF's campus. There are more than 45 species living on campus and some, like the gopher tortoise, which is currently listed as a threatened species west of the Mobile River in Alabama, are close to becoming endangered.
In addition to the animals, there are 800 acres of preserved, natural wetlands and forests on campus, which the 12-member staff of the Environmental Center is in charge of maintaining. The cypress dome behind the Student Union is one of two cypress domes the campus has vowed to protect. It is perhaps the best known because of the wooden boardwalk that juts across it, offering students an alternative way to travel from the union to other facilities.
"I love walking through [the cypress dome] on my way to class," political science senior Shay Kearney said. "It's the most beautiful place on campus."
Other swamps on campus are not as frequented as the Union's cypress dome. Hidden away in the northwestern parcel on campus is a large marsh surrounded by a titi strand. Titi strands are not commonly found as far south as Central Florida. This marsh is so well hidden by vegetation that only the residents of the nearby Tower apartments may be able to see it from the top floors.