Island
Preservation
Society
Pelican Island
Wildlife Festival
Saturday, March 11,
2006
9:00am - 4:00pm
Riverview Park -- Sebastian , Florida
The 103nd Birthday Celebration
of Pelican
Island
and the
National Wildlife Refuge System
Today, March 14, 2006 marks the 103rd anniversary of the National Wildlife Refuge System.
"This month the National Wildlife Refuge System enters its 103rd year and marks a time for celebration and reflection. The Refuge System is a national network of public lands second to none in the world—not only because of its historical roots and the habitat and wildlife it protects, but also thanks to the tremendous work of more than 3,000 dedicated people who steward nearly 100 million acres."
"National wildlife refuges are America’s visible promise that wild creatures will always have a place on the American landscape. You help make good on that promise every day."
"This anniversary also marks a time of change within the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, change that will help us look beyond the borders of national wildlife refuges to adjoining state and private lands. The Refuge System has the talent and enthusiasm to take a major leadership role in planning for the future. We must emphasize streamlined functions that put less stress on the field and more focus on partnerships and cross-program cooperation."
"We have made a commitment to complete Comprehensive Conservation Plans for all national wildlife refuges by 2012. The path has already been blazed by existing plans that will serve as models and by the state comprehensive conservation strategies they complement."
"Finally, on this Refuge System anniversary, we must commit ourselves more vigorously than ever before to delivering resource conservation on the ground, to the American people and the natural resources we serve. We are reshaping an institutional culture that will be ready for a new century of challenge and a new era of conservation."
"When President Theodore Roosevelt created the first bird sanctuary on Pelican Island, Florida, in 1903, he may not have foreseen a Refuge System that reached shore to shore, ocean to ocean. But he did dare to dream big, to challenge conventional thinking, to push for a vision that has carried us for more than a century."
"It’s now up to us to think big as well, to challenge the way we’ve always done business with ideas about how we could do business better. This anniversary is a time to adapt our organization, to hone our skills for the most important tasks—all for the benefit of present and future generations and the natural resources on which we all depend."
- Dale Hall, Director, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
For more information on the 103rd anniversary, please see the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service's News Release.
Jim Petrone, Hometown News, March 24, 2006
Wildlife celebrated at Pelican Island festival
By DAN GARCIAPress Journal, March 12, 2006
SEBASTIAN — Paul Kroegel, a German immigrant in jeans and suspenders, pointed his 10-gauge shotgun at a poacher who was hunting brown pelicans and ordered him off Pelican Island.
Then-President Teddy Roosevelt got on the phone and hired Kroegel as the nation's first game warden representing the Audubon Society.
The skit, harkening back to the late 1800s, was performed before a bleacher full of people at Riverview Park during the 14th annual Pelican Island Preservation Society Wildlife Festival on Saturday.
Hundreds of people attended the festival to enjoy foods, music and arts and crafts at the park along the Indian River Lagoon.
Click here to read the full story.
Gallery of Festival Photographs
(images will be available following the festival - coming soon!)
We wish to thank everyone who participated this year and made it another wonderful and successful event! Special thanks to all our volunteers who helped us put on the event. It's never too early to start thinking about next year's event, so if you are interested in helping out next year, please see the link to the left for "News/Information & Volunteering".
Free Parking. Free Admission. Free Activities.
This year's guest emcee is Capt. Dick Catri. Dick is well known to surfing enthusiasts. "Widely considered 'the godfather of East Coast surfing,' this Floridian has influenced the sport for more than 40 years."
"Today, Dick Catri enjoys a semi-retired lifestyle with his wife Terri just miles from Sebastian. When not organizing the annual Easter Festival, Captain Catri stays near the water by running fishing charters and, like every respected godfather, speaks his mind about surfing, especially when it comes to his East Coast territory."
Festival Activities
 The Birds of Pelican Island
Over 30 species of birds use Pelican Island as a
rookery, roost, feeding ground, or loafing area. 16 different
species of birds nest on Pelican Island, including the Brown
Pelican, Wood Stork, Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Reddish Egret, Cattle
Egret, Great Blue Heron, Little Blue Heron, Tricolored Heron,
Green-backed Heron, Black-crowned Night Heron, Double-crested
cormorant, Anhinga, White Ibis, American oystercatcher, Common
moorhen.
Wintering birds include the White pelican, double-crested
cormorant, Roseate Spoonbill, Blue-wing teal, Lesser scaup,
Red-breasted merganser, Ring-billed gull, Forster's tern, and Common
Loon.
Festival Information
General Event Information: Pelican Island Preservation SocietyP.O. Box 1903 Sebastian, Florida 32978-1903 Event Info: 772-567-3520 Email: info@pelicanislandfriends.org Website: www.pelicanislandfriends.org
What Does the Event Cost?All the event activities at Riverview Park are free.Where is the Festival Held?The festival is held at Riverview Park in Sebastian, Florida. Riverview Park is located at the intersection of SR 512 and US 1 along the western edge of the Indian River Lagoon.From I-95, take exit 69 and go east on SR 512. SR 512 ends at Riverview Park on US 1.
The Pelican Island Wildlife Festival is produced by the ... Pelican Island Preservation
Society Festival Committee
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FESTIVAL
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