ECOLOGICAL Project Experience

Wildlife Surveys / Permitting

Burrowing Owl and Gopher Tortoise Survey

Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport, Broward County, FL

E Sciences performed burrowing owl and gopher tortoise surveys at the Ft. Lauderdale Executive Airport in Broward County. For burrowing owls, nests and individual owls were identified and recorded and a permit for nest relocation to accommodate airport expansion was obtained from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC). Gopher tortoise burrows were also identified and gopher tortoises were relocated to a recipient site in accordance with the FWC permit.

Wildlife Surveys / Permitting

Manatee Observation and Seagrass Survey

Jupiter Inlet / Intracoastal Waterway, Palm Beach County, FL

E Sciences was responsible for 24/7 manatee observation and water quality monitoring during dredging activities in the vicinity of the Jupiter Inlet in the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway in Jupiter.  The duration of the dredging and beach fill placement was approximately three months.  In addition to the daily manatee observation and turbidity monitoring, E Sciences conducted post-dredge seagrass surveys and compared the data to surveys conducted prior to the dredging to determine if the dredging activities resulted in impacts to existing seagrasses.  Reports were submitted to the project engineer and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

Wildlife Surveys / Permitting

Gopher Tortoise Surveys

Conserv II Rapid Infiltration Basin, Orange County, FL

E Sciences is providing ecological consulting services related to Orange County’s and the City of Orlando’s Water Conserv II.  E Sciences has performed service within Rapid Infiltration Basin (RIB) Sites 1, 6, and 10 including a Bbaseline Survey of 58-acre RIB Site 6 conservation easement; creation of Habitat Management Plan for the conservation easement area; supervision of Land Management designed to increase gopher tortoise habitat; ecological monitoring of the conservation easement scheduled over five years; Gopher tortoise surveys of retired infiltration cells; permitting, excavation, and onsite relocation of gopher tortoises; preparation of maps and reports detailing the populations of threatened and endangered species on the site; Southeastern American kestrel survey; delineation of wetlands and identification of Seasonal High Water Levels; ecological assessment of RIB Sites 1 and 10 and Environmental Resource Permitting.

Wildlife Surveys / Permitting

JC Bermudez Park Burrowing Owl Survey and Relocation

City of Doral, Broward County, FL

E Sciences conducted a burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia floridana) survey at JC Bermudez Park in the City of Doral.  Three burrowing owls utilizing five active burrows were observed during the survey. The City of Doral is proposing to develop the park by adding a football stadium, an aquatic center, sports fields and other amenities. The nest locations were GPS recorded and a permit for nest relocation to accommodate the Parks proposed construction project was obtained from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. E Sciences evaluated each of the burrows under consideration, looked for obvious signs of nesting activity (such as burrow decoration), scoped the burrows to evaluate evidence of occupation, eggs or young.  The review confirmed that the burrows were inactive.  Each burrow was then carefully excavated, and collapsed without incident.  Park personnel were present to complete the site reclamation (e.g., grading, topsoil, and sod) once the burrow collapses were successfully completed.