Subject line: Class has been moved to the Everglades, See you there

By Jamie Kosten, Contributor

Although classes officially began on Jan. 13, 13 Canisius students and two professors started their semesters on Jan. 3 with a trip down south. Instead of a classroom on campus, the Ecology and Self course, taught by Dr. Jenn Lodi-Smith and Professor Jon Roth, met in the Everglades National Park in Florida to get real-world, hands-on learning experience. The time we spent camping in the Everglades is definitely the most memorable part of the class, but we will continue to meet throughout the semester.

We were all allowed to choose any method of transportation to get the Everglades. Some took planes and trains, while others made the 1,438 mile drive down from Buffalo. On the first full day in the Everglades we went to Flamingo – the most western part of the park which is right on the Florida Bay. In Flamingo, we learned quite a bit about the Florida Bay itself, got amazing photos of an Osprey in its nest and had a run-in with a very angry crab. 

Experiencing nighttime in the Everglades is incredible. After sunset, we’d slowly drive down the few roads in the park to see what animals we could find. On these nighttime excursions we saw an incredible number of animals including many kinds of fish, like the Florida gar, several alligators and even an eel! We also went on multiple night hikes where we got to experience the beauty of the Everglades in a different way. On one of the days, we returned to Flamingo and went canoeing near crocodiles and manatees all while learning about mangroves. 

Outside the Everglades, we spent time in the Florida Keys. While in the Keys, we all picked up a large amount of trash we found while hiking, went to a bird sanctuary where we spent time walking around in the waters of the Florida Bay and went snorkeling in the coral reef near Key Largo. While snorkeling, we got to explore the fascinating ecosystem of the reef and see a ton of new wildlife; not to mention the amazing dinner we had in Key Largo. We also stopped and explored the famous “Robert is Here” fruit stand, where I had a very nice smoothie and was bitten by an emu. One of the most interesting and memorable things we did was going through a cypress dome, where we walked through swamp water that went up to our knees and spent time in an environment most of us have never been in. We also got to see two barred owls and the endangered cowhorn orchid. 

All in all, this trip was unforgettable. I left the Everglades with knowledge of a whole new environment, new friends with whom I shared this amazing experience and a long list of animals I have never seen before. We kept track of every species of plant and animal we saw, and our number was well over 280! If you are interested in learning about and exploring one of the most interesting biomes on the planet, then I would highly recommend the Ecology and Self course.