The Pelican Island Conservation Society kicked off National Wildlife Refuge Week with the presentation of the 11th annual Indian River Bird & Nature Art Show. The event was hosted by the Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program at its home, the Historic Sebastian Public School building.
Built in 1928, the two-story building, which has also been called the Sebastian Grammar and Junior High School and the Old Sebastian Elementary School, was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2001. It also houses the Sebastian Area Historical Museum and is part of the Sebastian City Hall complex.
Tim Glover, past PICS president, said the Indian River Lagoon Council, which is responsible for the Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program, offered the space when a date conflict arose with last year’s host, the Environmental Learning Center. The Indian River Lagoon Council, which operates the IRLNEP, uses the tagline One Lagoon for its public outreach and mission: “Working toward One Lagoon, One Community, One Voice.”
“We had more photography this year than normal, it seems like,” said Glover at the Saturday afternoon artists’ reception for the juried show. Submissions also included watercolor, oil, acrylic, fabric, three-dimensional and a plein air painting done at the Pelican Island Wildlife Refuge.
As in the past, the artwork was all related to nature and wildlife, with a large number concentrating on our vast bird populations.
“This year we’re doing something a little different. We’ve got a gallery online, so people can just scan the QR code and buy it immediately if they want,” said Glover. “It’s actually working out pretty well, I think. The first person who showed up yesterday bought one of them.”
The nationwide event is meant to celebrate the National Wildlife Refuge system, which got its start when our own Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge was established on March 14, 1903, as the very first one.
“Originally some of the volunteers were planning to do some meet and greets and tram tours on the refuge itself, but they can’t do that because of the funding issues,” said Glover, adding that while the refuge is not closed, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife staff are furloughed.
“But it’s open as usual; anyone can go and visit there,” he said.
Other activities during the week included a presentation on Scrub Jay Conservation by Nora Fosman, a volunteer with the county’s Scrub Jay monitoring program, and Stephanie Lovallo, a retired art teacher, about the federally protected scrub jays, the only endemic birds in Florida.
And birding experts Dee and David Simpson took the nocturnally inclined on an owl prowl evening walk at the North Sebastian Conservation Area.
PICS is dedicated to promoting the awareness, conservation, stewardship and use of the Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge. Names of all the other National Wildlife Refuges are stamped into planks along the Centennial Trail, which leads to an observation tower with a view of Pelican Island itself and the birds that call it home.
The refuge, including its surrounding waterways, encompasses more than 5,400 acres, with an ecosystem that supports hundreds of species of birds, fish, plants and mammals, quite a number of which are threatened and endangered species. It is open to the public for passive recreation, such as hiking and birding along its well cared for trails, some of which are handicap accessible.
The entrance to the refuge is off Highway A1A, 3.5 miles south of the Sebastian Inlet. It can also be accessed by Historic Jungle Trail.
For more information, visit FirstRefuge.org or fws.gov.
Photos by Joshua Kodis
