Endangered Animals of Florida Series: Perdido Key LbNA #50140 (ARCHIVED)
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Add Location| Owner: | Adoptable |
|---|---|
| Plant date: | Sep 1, 2009 |
| Location: | |
| City: | Perdido Key |
| County: | Escambia |
| State: | Florida |
| Boxes: | 1 |
| Planted by: | Moo Poo  |
|---|---|
| Found by: | 2 turtles |
| Last found: | Mar 20, 2010 |
| Status: | FFFF |
| Last edited: | Sep 1, 2009 |
ENDANGERED ANIMALS OF FLORIDA SERIES: Perdido Key Beach Mouse Letterbox
Created by: Moo Poo
Placed by: Moo Poo and The Real Truth
Difficulty: Drive-By/ Easy
Stamp: Hand-carved
Fee: $3 per vehicle (up to 8 people). You may have to use honor box to pay fees; $2 pedestrians, bicyclists
Perdido Key Beach Mouse (Peromyscus polionotus trissyllepsis)
The Perdido Key beach mouse is generally considered to be Florida’s most endangered beach mouse. Though it may vary in color, the top coat of the Perdido Key beach mouse is generally paler than that of the Choctawhatchee beach mouse (which occurs to the east) and the Alabama beach mouse (which occurs to the west). As with the other subspecies of beach mice, the coat of the abdomen, sides, and cheeks is white. The beach mice live in sand dunes, mainly among sea oats (and thus, are not found in homes). The populations thrive only when the dunes are undisturbed and are devoid of exotic house mice, domestic cats, and red foxes.
Historically, this subspecies occurred, probably continuously, in coastal dune habitats from Pensacola Bay, Florida, in the east, to Perdido Bay, Alabama, in the west, including portions of Gulf Islands National Seashore. By 1986, the number of mice remaining was believed to be less than 30 animals, earning it the unfortunate designation as the Most Endangered Small Mammal In North America. Currently, the sole naturally occurring population is restricted to the western tip of Perdido Key at Gulf State Park, Baldwin County, Alabama. Perdido Key beach mice have been reintroduced in several areas within the historic range, and there are plans to continue the reintroduction in an effort to establish self-sustaining populations. Starting in 2000, a new population was reestablished on Perdido Key State Recreation Area.
In recent years, Florida populations have not been faring as well as Alabama populations. The ever-increasing coastal real estate boom in Florida continues the loss of formerly suitable beach mouse habitat within the range of all subspecies. According to the federal recovery plan, the Perdido Key, Choctawhatchee, and Alabama beach mice were reported to be “abundant and widespread throughout their respective ranges” as late as the 1940’s, when the coastline of the Florida Panhandle and Alabama was largely intact. At least 80 percent of the range of those three races has been lost to development. Loss or degradation of habitat from development and intensive recreational use remains the most serious threat to beach mice populations, and the effects of other threats such as hurricanes, domesticated cats and exotic house mice are amplified as a result.
Directions:
Perdido Key State Park – West Use Area (Hours: 8 am – Sunset)
From Interstate 10, take Exit 7A for Pine Forest Rd/ FL-297 toward Pensacola Naval Air Station
Merge onto Pine Forest Rd (following the signs for Pensacola N.A.S.). Go for about 2.4 miles.
Turn Right at FL-173/ Longleaf Dr and follow it for 10.4 miles.
Turn Right at FL-292/ Sorrento Rd and follow it for about 10 miles. It’ll turn into North Sore Court/ Perdido Key Dr.
You’ll drive past Perdido Key State Park East Use Area on your left and then drive past Sharp Reef Road on your right. After that, Perdido Key State Park West Use Area will be on your left.
Clues:
1) Go to the handicap parking area to the paved on-ramp (you’ll drive past 2 sets of stairs before you get to the on-ramp).
2) Walk onto the boardwalk and pass the upward sloping path on your right.
3) Turn left at the Y. You’ll now be walking parallel to the beach, past RV parking spots on your left.
4) The board walk ends. DO NOT step off the boardwalk onto the sand!
5) Observe how the end of the boardwalk has 4 support beams sticking out of the boardwalk. Support beam 1 is the one furthest from the parking lot (your right). In-between beam 1 and 2, under the boardwalk, is a black duct-taped bag. You may have to uncover it from some sand (as the sand may blow around in the area).
6) When finished please be sure to seal all bags completely. Be sure to put the baggie for the logbook and the baggie for the stamp in a 2nd bag, and then place back into the duct-taped bag.
7) Please re-hide the bag better than how you found it. You may have to dig out some sand so that you can slide it under the boardwalk so that it fits snug in-between the boardwalk and the sand.
8) Please log your find in to either AtlasQuest.com or Letterboxing.org
Created by: Moo Poo
Placed by: Moo Poo and The Real Truth
Difficulty: Drive-By/ Easy
Stamp: Hand-carved
Fee: $3 per vehicle (up to 8 people). You may have to use honor box to pay fees; $2 pedestrians, bicyclists
Perdido Key Beach Mouse (Peromyscus polionotus trissyllepsis)
The Perdido Key beach mouse is generally considered to be Florida’s most endangered beach mouse. Though it may vary in color, the top coat of the Perdido Key beach mouse is generally paler than that of the Choctawhatchee beach mouse (which occurs to the east) and the Alabama beach mouse (which occurs to the west). As with the other subspecies of beach mice, the coat of the abdomen, sides, and cheeks is white. The beach mice live in sand dunes, mainly among sea oats (and thus, are not found in homes). The populations thrive only when the dunes are undisturbed and are devoid of exotic house mice, domestic cats, and red foxes.
Historically, this subspecies occurred, probably continuously, in coastal dune habitats from Pensacola Bay, Florida, in the east, to Perdido Bay, Alabama, in the west, including portions of Gulf Islands National Seashore. By 1986, the number of mice remaining was believed to be less than 30 animals, earning it the unfortunate designation as the Most Endangered Small Mammal In North America. Currently, the sole naturally occurring population is restricted to the western tip of Perdido Key at Gulf State Park, Baldwin County, Alabama. Perdido Key beach mice have been reintroduced in several areas within the historic range, and there are plans to continue the reintroduction in an effort to establish self-sustaining populations. Starting in 2000, a new population was reestablished on Perdido Key State Recreation Area.
In recent years, Florida populations have not been faring as well as Alabama populations. The ever-increasing coastal real estate boom in Florida continues the loss of formerly suitable beach mouse habitat within the range of all subspecies. According to the federal recovery plan, the Perdido Key, Choctawhatchee, and Alabama beach mice were reported to be “abundant and widespread throughout their respective ranges” as late as the 1940’s, when the coastline of the Florida Panhandle and Alabama was largely intact. At least 80 percent of the range of those three races has been lost to development. Loss or degradation of habitat from development and intensive recreational use remains the most serious threat to beach mice populations, and the effects of other threats such as hurricanes, domesticated cats and exotic house mice are amplified as a result.
Directions:
Perdido Key State Park – West Use Area (Hours: 8 am – Sunset)
From Interstate 10, take Exit 7A for Pine Forest Rd/ FL-297 toward Pensacola Naval Air Station
Merge onto Pine Forest Rd (following the signs for Pensacola N.A.S.). Go for about 2.4 miles.
Turn Right at FL-173/ Longleaf Dr and follow it for 10.4 miles.
Turn Right at FL-292/ Sorrento Rd and follow it for about 10 miles. It’ll turn into North Sore Court/ Perdido Key Dr.
You’ll drive past Perdido Key State Park East Use Area on your left and then drive past Sharp Reef Road on your right. After that, Perdido Key State Park West Use Area will be on your left.
Clues:
1) Go to the handicap parking area to the paved on-ramp (you’ll drive past 2 sets of stairs before you get to the on-ramp).
2) Walk onto the boardwalk and pass the upward sloping path on your right.
3) Turn left at the Y. You’ll now be walking parallel to the beach, past RV parking spots on your left.
4) The board walk ends. DO NOT step off the boardwalk onto the sand!
5) Observe how the end of the boardwalk has 4 support beams sticking out of the boardwalk. Support beam 1 is the one furthest from the parking lot (your right). In-between beam 1 and 2, under the boardwalk, is a black duct-taped bag. You may have to uncover it from some sand (as the sand may blow around in the area).
6) When finished please be sure to seal all bags completely. Be sure to put the baggie for the logbook and the baggie for the stamp in a 2nd bag, and then place back into the duct-taped bag.
7) Please re-hide the bag better than how you found it. You may have to dig out some sand so that you can slide it under the boardwalk so that it fits snug in-between the boardwalk and the sand.
8) Please log your find in to either AtlasQuest.com or Letterboxing.org