Hurricane Ian brought record-breaking rainfall to Florida. Though Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary remained on the “dry” side of the storm, we received 5.8 inches of rainfall over the course of four days. Data loggers recorded near-record high water levels immediately following the storm, but water levels have already begun to slowly fall as fresh water moves toward our estuaries and coast.

Why This Matters

This is the beauty and value of wetlands like ours: they protect habitat and local communities from flooding. When so much rain falls in a short time, floodwaters must go somewhere. Our wetlands not only hold this water during severe weather events, but they also remove nutrients from surface water, reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires in our community, and provide habitat to many of our threatened and thriving wading birds, amphibians, reptiles, and mammals that call these wetlands home. 

As rivers to our north have finally crested, we are watching as our restoration efforts continue to improve conditions for wildlife while enabling this surface water to percolate down and recharge freshwater aquifers below ground.