They were among 70 teams from four counties that showed their environmental knowledge at Fort Cooper State Park.
By PAULETTE LASH RITCHIE
Published February 19, 2004
INVERNESS - The Springstead High School Hurricanes earned the top score out of 10 Hernando County teams during Wednesday's 2004 Regional Nature Coast Envirothon. Team members each received medallions and took a trophy back to their school.
The overall winner of the four-county championship was Pasco High School's Crusaders of Something. The team received a $2,500 scholarship, sponsored by the St. Petersburg Times, to divide among its members, and also took home the biggest trophy.
The teams with the highest number of points in individual categories also were recognized. The Hurricanes had the top score among all four counties in soils.
The Nature Coast Envirothon is a science competition for high school students from Citrus, Hernando, Pasco and Sumter counties. Nearly 350 students on 70 five-member teams (some groups were missing members) rotated among five stations at Fort Cooper State Park in Citrus, where they answered questions about aquatics, soils, wildlife, forestry and natural resource management in urban environments.
Each team had 30 minutes at each station. Winners were determined by the number of correct answers.
In the soils category, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service, the focus was the use of the Soil Survey of Citrus County. The book is used extensively for planning, permitting and environmental health, among other things, explained Paul Pilny, one of the Envirothon organizers.
"You need to use this book," he said. "Every county in every state has one."
In forestry, the students were tested by the Florida Division of Forestry on topics including site preparation for planting, measurement, disease, tree biology and fire control.
Natural resource management in urban environments was the variable category this year. The students were quizzed on preservation of wildlife within urban developments, soil stress and exotic management.
In aquatics, the students were tested on their knowledge of the different kinds of wetlands, water quality, aquatic wildlife and careers in aquatics.
An example question: "If you specialized in pteridology, you would most likely be a . . ."
The answer is botanist. Pteridology is the study of ferns. The aquatics test was provided by the Hernando County Planning Department.
Wildlife, sponsored by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, covered general wildlife, management, hunting and taxa. Students were face to face with an uncommon pine snake and asked to identify it. They also had to identify a bear footprint cast and a male turkey breast feather.
Springstead's Black Abyss members belong to an environmental club and said they had studied for more than six months. They didn't leave with a trophy, but junior Kyra Sim was able to recognize the value of all that studying.
"It's pretty interesting, the stuff you learn," she said.
After a lunch provided by the Friends of Fort Cooper State Park, the competitors gathered to hear the winners announced. The top scorers in each category and each county were recognized, ending with the name of the overall winner.
Category winners:
Forestry: Brady's Kids, Pasco County
Aquatics: Invasive Exotics, Sumter County
Wildlife: Crusaders of Something, Pasco
Soils: Hurricanes, Hernando County
Natural resource management in urban environments: Invasive Exotics, Sumter
Top scorers by county:
Citrus: SpongeBob, Academy of Environmental Science
Hernando: Hurricanes, Springstead High School
Pasco: Crusaders of Something, Pasco High School
Sumter: Invasive Exotics, South Sumter High School
The Envirothon was sponsored by the Times, Progress Energy, Friends of Fort Cooper State Park, H.W. Lochner, Zephyrhills Natural Springs Water, Coastal Trophy and Sign of Crystal River, the Hernando chapter of the Florida Audubon Society, and Citrus Mining and Timber.
Organizations and individuals coordinating the competition were Gary Maidhof, development services director for Citrus County; Pilny, Nature Coast Envirothon treasurer; Greg Hamilton, Citrus County editor of editorials for the Times; Joanne Hurley, Florida's Turnpike community relations coordinator; Dawn Durham, Hernando County; Kevin MacEwen, Division of Forestry; Rachel Cheever, Pasco County utilities; Clay Black, Southwest Florida Water Management District; Kristin Wood, Nancy Dwyer and Justin Nolte, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission; Mary Miller, Pasco County schools; Jan McLean, Hernando County Utilities Services; and Dan Oliver, Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service.
