Your Turn: Habitat protection needed for Marco’s endangered gopher tortoises
I am a resident requesting a question be placed on our next voting ballot so our residents have an opportunity to give their feedback.
The question is: Would you agree to have a very small percentage of your taxes go to funding the purchase of vacant lots with endangered tortoise burrows for preservation by the City of Marco Island?
An example of how this type of question played out for the benefit of all is Laguna Beach, Calif. in the early 1990’s. The residents were asked if they agreed to have a small percentage of their taxes go to the purchase of Laguna Canyon, a wilderness area between the beach and the major highway to the east. If it wasn’t purchased by the residents, it would have been sold and fully developed. 80 % of voters said yes on the ballot, and it was forever saved for the enjoyment of people, flora and fauna !
Now, let me transition to the reality of Marco Island, 2024 …
Recently, as an example, the lot at the corner of Kirk Terrace and Caxambas was sold and will be developed for a large home. There had been 60 tortoise burrows on the property which have now been destroyed.
The tortoises from this lot were moved 100 miles away to an inland site with a slightly different climate, vegetation and social conditions.
Sellers and buyers are lulled into complacency, assuming the move is no big deal for the tortoises. That is indeed not the case! According to several biologists I spoke to, the move is extraordinarily stressful for the tortoises. Many do not habituate, they wander in agitation, and their longevity is compromised. They are only monitored on a yearly basis, and much can and does go wrong in that time. The young and older tortoises are detrimentally affected the most.
Keeping the tortoises in their current habitat allows them the best chance of survival.
Conservation Collier has provided some relief for habitat loss, but that organization has the entire county to address for conservation, so we must step up if we want to see conservation a priority here.
It is really our responsibility and privilege to protect this endangered species, and it is truly now or never, given the momentum of development.
By our joint effort as a community, we can make a difference now, for generations to come to experience these historic creatures.