Perico Preserve to add to Manatee County coastal preserves

PERICO ISLAND -- Boasting a large diversity of wildlife and plants, a new Manatee County park will soon expand the already extensive 1,200-acre preserve system along the county coast.

Perico Preserve, a 175-acre park at 11700 Manatee Ave. W. on Perico Island, has been extensively restored since 2012, transforming abandoned coastal farmland into a landscape with native wildlife habitats.

While 99 percent complete, a few amenities still

need to be added before the preserve can open to the public in May.

"It's important for us in building these special places to have the public appreciate and experience the location and get their feet wet, hands in the soil and get them part of the environment," said Charlie Hunsicker, county Parks and Natural Resources Department director.

With more than 100 plant species now calling Perico Preserve home, there is also an abundance of insects, which depend on the different kinds of plants, and birds and other animals, which are eating the insects, said Damon Moore, county environmental program manager of ecological resources.

In the center of the preserve, there is a rookery island for wading birds.

"That wide diversity is one of the big reasons when you come out here you'll see a large diversity of wildlife, as well," he said. "It's going to be an excellent place for bird watching."

After Manatee County acquired the property in 2007 for $6 million, work began on how to bring back the native habitat, Hunsicker said.

"That was the principle going in," Hunsicker said. "We built this for the people. ... Preserves like this in Manatee County are destinations to provide that retreat, return to our natural order of things without 90-degree angles stopping to tell us where to walk. These are places that are precious for us."

No bikes, no dogs

Bicycles and dogs will be prohibited at Perico Preserve as when the habitat was being rebuilt. Birds and other wildlife are conditioned to be around people but not around dogs, Hunsicker said.

"Our objective was wildlife first, people second," he said.

Moore, who began working on designs and Perico Preserve permits before he started working at Manatee County more than four years ago, was able to continue working on the project through construction and preparations for its opening to the public.

The restoration cost approximately $2 million, which was funded by $300,000 from the Southwest Florida Water Management District and from enterprise utility funds for the use of removed soils to assist with construction of another project.

"It's been an absolutely wonderful experience to be able to do that and am looking forward to doing it with others as we move forward with more of these great preserves," Moore said.

With the help of more than 200 volunteers working hundreds of hundreds of hours over the last two and a half years, exotic vegetation was removed from the site to make way for re-establishment of native vegetation, resulting in "a lot of restored habitats out here, a great diversity of plants and animals and a lot of things that a lot of people are really going to enjoy to come out and watch," Moore said.

When the county increased the diversity among plants and then insects, it started to holistically rebuild the habitat, Moore said.

"One of our primary focuses on here when we were working up the restoration plan was to be very true to the habitats we were trying to restore or create out here," Moore said. "One of the things we really worked hard to do was really get a diverse spectrum of native plants re-established on the site to try and mimic those that are in the existing habitats that have never been disturbed and in doing that, it builds these habitats back up from the bottom of the food chain back up so when you get the plants right and get the diversity right, you are supporting more animals and that's a lot of the things that the people like to come out and see the birds and everything else."

Future projects

A Perico Preserve seagrass habitat could be used for future mitigation for public projects.

"We will be able to develop a crop of seagrass that could be used to offset impacts," Hunsicker said of projects such as a new bridge to Anna Maria Island. "We stand to be able to at least recover our costs and put back into the preserves to create those places of reflections and solace and retreat from our built environment."

Perico Preserve is not the only work the county is doing at its preserves. A 150-acre expansion is underway at Robinson Preserve and should be completed within three years.

Robinson Preserve contouring of former farmland created four primary features, including open water, mangrove tunnel, shallow-water oyster beds and elevations for a walking trail, Hunsicker said.

Ungarelli Preserve along Palma Sola Bay should be opened in April, Hunsicker said.

A connection between Robinson Preserve and Perico Preserve is also planned.

The county acquired the final necessary parcel, owned by Perico Roadways Inc., in January to link Robinson Preserve south access point to Perico Preserve.

With the county capable of putting in the trail, the time will be right whenever the connection comes together, Hunsicker said.

"We now have the insurance to be able to do that," Hunsicker said of $40,000 parcel deal. "For that, it will provide us a forever connection between preserves without walking along major state highway to get there."

Amazing transformation

Manatee County Commissioner John Chappie, who represents West Bradenton and Anna Maria Island, said Thursday it is amazing to see the transformation of Perico Preserve.

"It's incredible," Chappie said. "The work that these guys have done. It is amazing. This preserve is another jewel in our coastal community."

Once open, Chappie said he thinks people will be impressed with Perico Preserve.

"The residents of Manatee County and visitors are going to be amazed of experiences of Robinson, Perico and Neal preserves and the connectivity of the coastal community here in Manatee County. It is like no other place in Florida. In Manatee County, we have a deep rich history of preserving our coastal community and doing the right thing."

Moore said Perico Preserve will one of the few places left where people can get a sense of the natural habitat.

"We owe it to generations down the line to save some of these places," he said. "This is leaving a place to do it. It is one of the things that make me grin the most."

Claire Aronson, Manatee County reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7024. Follow her on Twitter @Claire_Aronson.

This story was originally published February 13, 2016 at 11:58 PM with the headline "Perico Preserve to add to Manatee County coastal preserves ."