January 2023 Media Toolkit

Three Landscapes Approved for Protection

The Florida Governor and Cabinet approved funding for the permanent conservation of 2,951 acres within and adjacent to the Florida Wildlife Corridor during the January 17, 2023 Cabinet meeting.

Please use this digital media toolkit to share this exciting news with your audience.

A message for our partners, colleagues, and friends in Florida: The protected lands of the Florida Wildlife Corridor are a place where our collective missions intersect. Land conservation successes contributing to the Corridor help ensure the long-term survival of many species, provide life support systems for Florida’s cities, improve the health of our waters, and protect natural Florida for future generations. As Florida grows, continued investment in conservation lands is critical to ensure that our wild lands will provide benefits to all Floridians.

Press

Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation Celebrates Lands Conserved by Governor DeSantis and Cabinet During the First Cabinet Meeting of 2023

Media Requirements

Please reach out to Kendra Parson at (850) 418-1126 with any media inquiries.

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Suggested Post: On January 17, the Florida Governor and Cabinet approved funding for the permanent conservation of  2,951 acres across three properties within and adjacent to the Florida Wildlife Corridor. The properties are Rainbow River Corridor (photo 1), Osceola Pine Savannas (photo 2), and Triple Diamond (photo 3). Triple Diamond, located near Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park, is adjacent to the Florida Wildlife Corridor and will provide further land for wide ranging wildlife, protection of freshwater systems, and habitat for many native species.

The properties were funded through the Florida Forever program. The non-profit land trust Conservation Florida assisted in the protection of Rainbow River Corridor and Triple Diamond. All three properties are to be protected by conservation easements, where the land will continue to be privately owned and managed.

Two additional properties approved for conservation are outside of the Florida Wildlife Corridor. An acquisition within the Charlotte Harbor Estuary Florida Forever Project will expand adjacent Don Pedro Island State Park and provide additional buffering from development and resiliency to coastal flooding. This deal was made possible through partnership with the Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast. The acquisition of property near Jacksonville will complete the Tiger Island Florida Forever Project, connecting a network of national and state preserves as well as parks that stretch from St. Andrews Sound in Georgia to the St. Johns River in Florida.

Instagram tags: @conservationflorida, @fl.dep, @conservationfoundationgc, @wildpath, Photos and Videos by @carltonward, @leyoho, Maps by @angeline.maps, @archboldstation

Facebook tags: @ConserveFlorida, @Florida Department of Environmental Protection, @Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast, @Wildpath, Photos and Videos by @Carlton Ward and Lauren Yoho, Maps by Angeline Meeks, @Archbold Biological Station

Suggested Post: Osceola Pine Savannas is a 287-acre property within the Florida Wildlife Corridor that was approved for a conservation easement through funding from Florida Forever at the January 17, 2023 meeting of the Governor and Cabinet. The property provides habitat for wildlife such as swallow-tailed kites, striped newts, red cockaded woodpeckers, crested caracaras, gopher tortoises, and eastern indigo snakes. Osceola Pine Savannas is home to cypress forests, longleaf-pine flatwoods, and dry prairies.

Photos: (1) Ferns grow in the (2) cypress forest at Osceola Pine Savannas property. (3) The sun rises at one of the ponds located on the property. (4) A hooded pitcher plant (scientific name: sarracenia minor) is a carnivorous plant native to North America. (5) The landowner, Mark, walks and observes the plant life.

This conservation easement was made possible with the leadership of the landowner and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

Instagram tags: @fl.dep, @wildpath, Photos by @georgemckenziejr and @leyoho

Facebook tags: @Florida Department of Environmental Protection, @Wildpath, Photos by George McKenzie Jr/Wildpath and Lauren Yoho/Wildpath

Map Instagram tags: Map by @angeline.maps, @archboldstation

Map Facebook tags: Map by Angeline Meeks, @Archbold Biological Station

Suggested Reel Post: Osceola Pine Savannas is a 287-acre property within the Florida Wildlife Corridor that was approved for a conservation easement through funding from Florida Forever at the January 17, 2023 meeting of the Governor and Cabinet. The property provides habitat for wildlife such as swallow-tailed kites, striped newts, red cockaded woodpeckers, crested caracaras, gopher tortoises, and eastern indigo snakes. Osceola Pine Savanna is home to cypress forests, longleaf-pine flatwoods, and dry prairies.

This conservation easement was made possible with the leadership of the landowner and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

Reel tags: @fl.dep, Video by @wildpath

Photos by Lauren Yoho/Wildpath and Photo 3 by George McKenzie Jr/Wildpath

Download Osceola Pine Savannas Images and Map Download Osceola Pine Savannas Reels

Suggested Post: The Triple Diamond property has been recently approved for conservation at the January 17, 2023 meeting of the Governor and Cabinet through funding from Florida Forever. The 2,529 acres are within Everglades Headwaters National Wildlife Refuge and Conservation Area and Avon Park Sentinel Landscape, prioritized for protection by the US Department of Defense. The land is adjacent to the Florida Wildlife Corridor and is home to gopher tortoises, swallow-tailed kites, Florida sandhill cranes, crested caracaras.

Photos: (1) Vast seasonal wetlands on the property are vital to the health of the Everglades Headwaters and connect to (3) vast prairies and provide habitat for numerous species such as (2) white-tailed deer and (4) Osceola turkeys.

This conservation easement was made possible with the leadership of the landowner, Conservation Florida, and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

Instagram tags: @conservationflorida, @fl.dep, @wildpath, Photos by @CarltonWard

Facebook tags: @Conserve Florida, @Florida Department of Environmental Protection, @Wildpath, Photos by @Carlton Ward

Map Instagram tags: Map by @angeline.maps, @archboldstation

Map Facebook tags: Map by Angeline Meeks, @Archbold Biological Station

Download Triple Diamond Images and Map

Suggested Post: A newly-approved 135-acre conservation easement along Rainbow River will help protect an important piece of the Florida Wildlife Corridor and Rainbow River Corridor Florida Forever Project. The property will protect land and water quality along the Rainbow River, help bring connectivity to Rainbow Springs State Park, and provide habitat to many species of native wildlife.

Photos: (1) The conservation easement will protect nearly a mile of cypress-lined shoreline on the Rainbow River, (2) a yellow-bellied slider suns itself on a submerged log (3) further upstream, paddlers enjoy the spring-fed river beside Rainbow River State Park, (4) white ibises are among dozens of species of waterbirds that thrive among newly protected wetlands, 5) Conservation Florida CEO Traci Deen paddles at dawn along rare undeveloped shoreline that her organization worked with the landowner and Florida Department of Environmental Protection to help preserve.

Thank you to the leadership of the landowner, the Department of Environmental Protection, and Conservation Florida who came together to make this opportunity possible.

Instagram tags: @conservationflorida, @fl.dep, @wildpath, Photos by @carltonward

Facebook tags: @Conserve Florida, @Florida Department of Environmental Protection, @Wildpath, Photos by @Carlton Ward

Map Instagram tags: Map by @angeline.maps, @archboldstation

Map Facebook tags: Map by Angeline Meeks, @Archbold Biological Station

Suggested Reel caption: A newly-approved 135-acre conservation easement along Rainbow River will help protect an important piece of the Florida Wildlife Corridor and Rainbow River Corridor Florida Forever Project. The property will protect land and water quality along the Rainbow River, help bring connectivity to Rainbow Springs State Park, and provide habitat to many species of native wildlife.

Thank you to the leadership of the landowner, the Department of Environmental Protection, and Conservation Florida who came together to make this opportunity possible.

Reel tags: @conservationflorida, @fl.dep, @wildpath, Video by @carltonward

Download Rainbow River Images and Map Rainbow River Reel

Suggested Hastags
#KeepFLWild #ConnectTheCorridor #FloridaWildlifeCorridor

#WildlifeCorridors #ProtectWildPlaces #LandConservation #WildFlorida

Usage Rights
Visuals by Carlton Ward Jr., Lauren Yoho, George McKenzie Jr. and Angeline Meeks provided for one-time use for coverage or promotion of Florida Wildlife Corridor-related news from the January 17 Board of Trustees meeting, dated January 2023. Copying, sublicensing, sale, distribution, and archiving are prohibited.

Mandatory Social Media Usage Requirements
For images, include the photo credit tag as listed:

Instagram: @Wildpath, Photo by @CarltonWard, @leyoho, or @georgemckenziejr (reference photo grids for credit guidance)
Facebook: @Wildpath, Photo by @Carlton Ward, Lauren Yoho, or George McKenzie, Jr (reference photo grids for credit guidance)
Twitter: Photo by @CarltonWard, Lauren Yoho, or George McKenzie, Jr. (reference photo grids for credit guidance)
For maps, include the map photo credits:

Instagram: Map by @angeline.maps and @archboldstation
Facebook: Map by Angeline Meeks, @Archbold Biological Station
Twitter: @AngelineMeeks and @ArchboldStation
Mandatory Online/Print Usage Requirements for Multimedia
Include the photo/map credit:

Photos:

Carlton Ward, Jr./Wildpath
Lauren Yoho/Wildpath
George McKenzie, Jr./Wildpath
Map: Angeline Meeks, Archbold Biological Station

Mandatory On-Air Usage Requirements for Multimedia
For on-air usage, include credit with each photo, map, or video used:

Photos:

Carlton Ward, Jr./Wildpath
Lauren Yoho/Wildpath
George McKenzie, Jr./Wildpath
Map: Angeline Meeks, Archbold Biological Station