Fifteen Floridians from six counties – including Collier – are ill with a potentially life threatening infection— potentially linked to e-coli exposure at a petting zoo that traveled to the Central Florida Fair in Orlando and the Plant City Strawberry Festival near Tampa. Florida Department of Health Secretary Dr. John Agwunobi briefed reporters on the situation this afternoon via a statewide teleconference. Valerie Alker reports. (AUDIO)

The number of trauma cases in southwest Florida appears to be steady throughout the year… and NOT dependent on whether it’s season. That’s according to the trauma program manager for Lee Memorial Trauma Center in Fort Myers. Terry Papp attributes it to population growth.

“Our trauma rates have not changed in any given season. We’ve been seeing well over a hundred trauma alerts every month. And a trauma alert is somebody EMS recognizes out in the field that has life-threatening injuries… and needs to come to a trauma center for resuscitation.”

Papp says the majority of trauma cases are the result of automobile accidents. She also says the trend points to an ongoing need for blood donors. Trauma victims often need transfusions.
Lee Memorial runs a system of blood-mobiles and collection centers. But, when its own supplies run low, it’s forced to buy blood products from other sources.

U.S. Representative Connie Mack IV of Fort Myers is fighting a 20-year old fight his father started in Congress – the wish for a veterans hospital in Southwest Florida. Mack’s father - Connie Mack the third - fought for such a facility for the area when he was in Congress nearly two decades ago. It still hasn’t happened. The closest VA hospital is in St. Petersburg, a three-hour drive away. Mack says that doesn’t serve the more than 103,000 veterans in the region well.

“We now have the fourth largest veterans population – the 14th congressional district – in the country. So I think that merits a Veterans Hospital. You know I don’t know if we’re going to be successful but we’re going to fight hard to try to make sure that that happens because it’s a shame that we’re having our men and women who fought for this country having to travel three, three and a half hours to get the services they need. They should be able to do that right here in our community.”

Mack says he wants to bring Veterans Affairs officials to the area for a town hall meeting within the next month so they can hear about the need themselves. He urges local veterans to attend such a meeting to make a good case. Mack brought federal transportation budget officials to Lee County last month to help garner more money to expand Interstate 75 – and it worked.

A cute fuzzy duckling might seem like a perfect Easter gift. But, if they outgrow their welcome releasing them into the wild may not be an option. That’s because it is illegal to release captive-reared mallard ducks into the wild. Mallards are the most common ducks sold as pets.
Once released, domesticated ducks can transmit diseases – and compete with native wildlife for food and habitat. Wildlife biologists are also concerned that mallards put Florida’s mottled duck population at risk. Florida Fish & Wildlife waterfowl research biologist - Ron Bielefeld says the pet mallards don’t know to leave the area when its wild counterparts do.

“The mallard is an exotic here in the summertime. It’s not a native breeding duck…we do get a few wild mallards that migrate down here in the wintertime…but generally they move back north to breed. So in the summertime the only mallard-type duck we have is the Florida mottled duck.”

Because the domesticated mallards don’t migrate, they’re crossbreeding with the mottled duck.
Bielefeld estimates as many as 12 percent of Florida’s mottled duck population shows genetic evidence of hybridization. That might mean eventual extinction. Mallards as pets are legal…but only with only a permit.

There may soon be stricter limits on nutrients flowing into Lake Okeechobee. This week, a judge threw out earlier state limits. They applied mainly to phosphorous levels in nine tributaries that feed Florida’s largest lake. The judge found the science behind them faulty—and said the Department of Environmental Protection conducted a flawed process in creating them. The decision came after a lawsuit against the DEP by several environmental groups. Attorney for “Earthjustice”, David Guest, says the department needed to set much more aggressive limits.

“The specific pollutant was phosphorous—which is a major element of fertilizer and livestock waste. The lake needs to get down to a level of about 40 parts per billion. We have to get the pollution in the tributaries down to about 40 parts per billion if we’ve got any chance at all of rescuing the lake. The department’s proposal was to set it at 159 parts per billion… almost four times higher than what was needed.”

A spokesperson for the DEP says the agency is reviewing the decision—and is committed to restoration of Lake Okeechobee. The 9 tributaries in question flow into the northeastern portion. The lake has become polluted over the last several decades—with frequent algae blooms and a thick layer of muck on the bottom.

A cute fuzzy duckling might seem like a perfect Easter gift. But, if they outgrow their welcome releasing them into the wild may not be an option. That’s because it is illegal to release captive-reared mallard ducks into the wild. Mallards are the most common ducks sold as pets.
Once released, domesticated ducks can transmit diseases – and compete with native wildlife for food and habitat. Wildlife biologists are also concerned that mallards put Florida’s mottled duck population at risk. Florida Fish & Wildlife waterfowl research biologist - Ron Bielefeld says the pet mallards don’t know to leave the area when its wild counterparts do.

“The mallard is an exotic here in the summertime. It’s not a native breeding duck…we do get a few wild mallards that migrate down here in the wintertime…but generally they move back north to breed. So in the summertime the only mallard-type duck we have is the Florida mottled duck.”

Because the domesticated mallards don’t migrate, they’re crossbreeding with the mottled duck.
Bielefeld estimates as many as 12 percent of Florida’s mottled duck population shows genetic evidence of hybridization. That might mean eventual extinction. Mallards as pets are legal…but only with only a permit.

Two Florida panther kittens rescued from the wild are reportedly doing well. Ryan Warner has more. (AUDIO)

The Lee County Bird Patrol has designated the month of March “Bird Fest” - a time to reach out to area residents and share knowledge about Southwest Florida’s birds. Thirty-two volunteers do monthly bird counts at sites throughout Lee County. Valerie Alker recently toured Lakes Park with Sue Moore – one of the Bird Patrol’s founders. On Saturday there’s a guided birding tour of Little Estero Lagoon. (AUDIO)

Congressman Connie Mack of Fort Myers toured a damaged Lee county beach this morning along with those concerned about getting federal funding for repairs. Amy Tardif was there.
(AUDIO)

Superintendent of Lee County Schools, Dr. James Browder, is asking citizens for their opinions on growth. He hopes they’ll phone in the comments… through a Strategic Listening call-in line.
The district’s used the line several times over the past year – but generally to gather opinions on things like mascots and color schemes for new schools. Now, Dr. Browder wants residents of Lee County – and not just parents – to answer 4 questions he recently asked during a series of community conversations. All 4 questions deal with solutions the district is considering to help get a handle on growth… like double-sessions, portables, and year-‘round schooling. The call-in line also asks if a sales tax—to help pay for growth— would be acceptable. Callers are asked to rank each idea from least to most acceptable by pushing 1 through 6 on their touchtone phones. All responses are confidential. The questions are available in English, Spanish and Creole.