The city of Lakeland held its 42nd annual swan roundup Tuesday morning starting at dawn. City workers gathered the swans, descended from Queen Elizabeth II’s birds, to give them their annual health checkup.
Category: Environment
Posted inEnvironment, Public Safety
City Accelerates Debris Collection, Estimates 2 to 4 Weeks to Complete
The city of Lakeland has accelerated its effort to collect tree limbs and other debris piled up in yards following Hurricane Ian. Starting today, trucks from a private trash hauler are beginning a series of debris-collection sweeps estimated to take two to four weeks to complete.
Posted inEnvironment, Neighborhoods
Lakeland Adding More Butterfly Gardens to Boost Monarch Population
The city of Lakeland is adding two more butterfly gardens to the four it already maintains in an effort to help restore the monarch butterfly population.
Posted inEnvironment, Neighborhoods
Lakeland Adding More Butterfly Gardens to Boost Dwindling Monarch Numbers
The city of Lakeland is adding two more butterfly gardens to the four it already maintains in an effort to help restore the monarch butterfly population. In addition, the city is offering residents free milkweed plants in order to encourage more home butterfly gardens.
Posted inEnvironment
Wildlife Experts Offer Explanations for Florida Panther Sightings in Lakeland
Wildlife officials give several explanations for the rare sightings of two Florida panthers in Lakeland last week (which we noted here), News Channel 8 reports. Development in their South Florida habitat may be driving male panthers north as they search for mates, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. And a ZooTampa specialist […]
Posted inEnvironment
Endangered Florida Panther Killed by Vehicle Along Polk Parkway
A 2-year-old male Florida panther died after being struck along the Polk Parkway in the Lakeland area, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission reports. It’s the 11th known death of one of the endangered felines this year; all were attributed to vehicle collisions, Fox 13 News reports. Five were in Collier County, three in Hendry […]
Posted inCity Hall, Environment
Lakeland Commission OKs $93M in Alternative Water Projects
There’s water, water everywhere in Florida but only so many drops to drink and so many ways to pipe those drops from wells to spigots.
Posted inEnvironment, Recreation
Lake Crago Winter Algae Bloom Stirs Fears of Long Summer Ahead
It’s been a relatively mild winter, even by Florida standards, and warm, sunny days with temperatures in the low 90s are forecast for Central Florida in the coming week. But already one of Lakeland’s 37 named lakes is showing signs of heat stress with the Florida Department of Health in Polk County issuing a health […]
Posted inEnvironment, Public Safety
New Hurricane Hunters Aircraft Expected for 2024 Season
It will be 2024’s storm season before NOAA’s Lakeland-based Hurricane Hunters can use the Gulfstream 550 they’ve been seeking, the Associated Press reports. NOAA started trying for the new aircraft in 2019, wanting their fourth storm-chasing aircraft to be active in 2022. The agency’s 2022 budget request includes $100 million for the jet, and delivery […]
Posted inEnvironment
Video: Lake Morton Swans Rounded Up for Annual Physicals
During the city of Lakeland’s annual swan roundup on Tuesday, Steve Platt of the Parks and Recreation Department took Fox 13’s Elizabeth Fry on his boat to show how he and his co-workers catch the fleeing feathered creatures on Lake Morton. Veterinarians from My Pet’s Animal Hospital are performing the swans’ annual checkups today.