History
Early History
The earliest known history of the NATL area begins in 1901 when the property was purchased by the Richbourg family. The family used the land for cultivating crops (although the type of crop is unknown) and cattle grazing. In 1944, C. Richbourg and his wife sold 192 acres to the State of Florida, including the parcel of land that is present day NATL.
Development of the university
In the 1950s, during the construction of the Medical Science building, NATL was used as a dumping area for clay and excavation debris. The sinkhole in the southern SEEP area was also being used as a burn pit during this period. Harvested grasses brought to the site for burning account for the presence of many non-natives such as Cogon grass and elephant grass. The dumping area contained a raised mound which was used as a golf-driving range. The UF Golf Team practiced here, and the area eventually became known as "Freeman's driving range".
By 1990, the park-and-ride lot, the Harn Museum, the Entomology and Nematology building, and the Southwest Chiller Plant had all been built surrounding what is now NATL. A retention pond was excavated to accommodate for runoff from the roads and parking lots, which later was transformed into the SEEP.
Birth of NATL
In May 1993, the urbanization of areas north and east of what is now NATL stimulated the formation of a Planning Group, consisting of 15 persons who wanted 45 acres of the tract now known as NATL-west designated a “campus natural area and outdoor teaching laboratory.” The Planning Group selected Dana Griffin (Botany), Joe Schaefer (Wildlife Ecology & Conservation), and Tom Walker (Entomology & Nematology) to draft a proposal to that effect. A draft was completed, circulated, and revised. The final proposal was endorsed by faculty in all departments that were likely users of the area and submitted to Campus Planning in July 1993. It was endorsed by the University Land-Use and Facilities Planning Committee in May 1994.
With encouragement from IFAS Dean for Academic Programs Larry J. Connor, a Natural Area Advisory Committee, with members representing the principal users, was organized in September 1994. Its charge was to plan the development and management of NATL.
Additions to NATL
In 1997, NATL was allowed to annex about an acre of the Surge Area immediately north of the mini-warehouses. In 2005, as part of the 2005-2015 update of the Campus Master Plan, NATL was expanded to include the 11 acres that became NATL-east and west of Natural Area Drive the boundaries of NATL were redrawn to annex about three more Surge Area acres.
Additional History
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Founding of NATL
In 1993, Dana Griffin (Botany)(left), Joe Schaefer (Wildlife Ecology and Conservation), and Tom Walker (Entomology and Nematology) authored the proposal that led to the start of NATL in 1994. Here, in 2000, they planted a sign identifying successional plots in the NATL Old Field.
Documents associated with the founding of NATL, including the 1993 proposal, can be found on the Documents & Records page of our website.
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A More Detailed History
Much of NATL's early history has been passed down over the years through interviews such as the one below. As new generations take over stewardship of the natural area, these records become vital to remembering the history which might otherwise be lost.
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Management, maintenance, and funding
When the Natural Area Advisory Committee [NAAC] was formed in September 1994 it had no status with UF administration other than an IFAS dean and no official administrative oversight, but in 1996, when NAAC sought to put a fence along NATL's (and UF's) south border, it was discovered by Tigert Hall. The result was that NAAC agreed to be supervised by the Lakes, Vegetation and Landscaping Committee (LVLC), an official UF committee whose responsibilities include making recommendations to the UF Administration on the management of natural areas. NAAC would keep LVLC informed of its activities and plans and the Chair of LVLC would become an ex officio member of NAAC.
As NATL developed, its need for routine support increased. In March 2001, Provost David Colburn approved these policies:
- The Natural Area Advisory Committee (NAAC), consisting of at least one representative from each department or other unit making significant use of NATL and the Chair of the Lakes, Vegetation, and Landscaping Committee, will recommend management plans and seek their implementation. Each fall the Chair of NAAC will send a written report of the Committee's activities for the previous school year to appropriate administrators and will report in person to the Lakes, Vegetation, and Landscaping Committee.
- NAAC and PPD will work cooperatively to ensure the maintenance of NATL. Each will do those tasks that it can handle most efficiently. The Chair of NAAC will communicate directly with PPD and the Vice President of Administrative Affairs regarding the maintenance of NATL.
- NAAC will ask the Provost for funds to cover its routine operations. Each such request will be accompanied by a report of all NAAC expenditures not previously documented. For major projects, NAAC will also request the Provost's support, but with copies to the Vice President of Administrative Affairs, the Vice President for Agriculture and Natural Resources, and the Deans of the Colleges of Agricultural and Life Sciences, Liberal Arts and Sciences, Engineering, and Education.
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Nature Trail Development
Funding
The original proposal to establish NATL envisioned a system of nature trails through the three upland ecosystems in the public portion of NATL. For more than a decade, no nature trails were established because of a lack of funds and the need to tend to more pressing aspects of NATL's development. In 2005, the Student Government and the Administration agreed to use $500,000 from the student-generated Capital Improvement Trust Fund for an Environmental Stewardship project to improve the University's 20-odd conservation areas.
The Natural Area Advisory Committee [NAAC] asked for money from this project to establish four self-guided nature trails in the NATL-west Conservation Area--namely, the three long-desired upland trails plus a wetlands trail for SEEP. In the spring of 2006, NAAC was awarded $100,000 for these trails with the understanding that the SEEP Trail would include a boardwalk. When it became apparent that the cost of the boardwalk and six contractor-built, trail-head kiosks would greatly exceed the amount awarded, additional funds were sought and received from several sources. Furthermore, the Florida Museum of Natural History agreed to help build the kiosks, with NAAC-supplied materials, saving NAAC about $6,000.
Trail Layout
It was anticipated that a majority of those using the trails would be visitors to UF's Cultural Plaza and that the Florida Museum of Natural History's Outdoor Nature Programs would use NATL much more than in the past. Consequently, the layout of the trails was optimized for access to the trailheads from the Cultural Plaza and from the adjacent Natural Area Park. The last link in completing the trail layout was an access trail from the Cultural Plaza to the trailheads for the Upland Pine and Old Field Nature Trails. This trail was developed by UF's Physical Plant in cooperation with the Cultural Plaza Advisory Committee.
The Natural Area Advisory Committee designed and funded the access trail's wayfinding signs, including a directional sign at the origin of the trail and a 3x2 ft sign highlighting the ecosystems traversed by the four nature trails--installed just north of where the trail crosses the Florida Museum of Natural History's service drive. Installation of these signs was completed in March 2010.
Initial Content Development
Six graduate students in Susan Jacobson's Fall 2006 class on Environmental Interpretation undertook the development of the explanatory panels for the six nature trail kiosks, for the stand-alone panels along the SEEP Nature Trail, and for the west side of the Natural Area Park kiosk. One trio (Josiah Townsend, Krystal Noiseux, Jeffrey Anderson) worked on the panels for the three upland trails, and the other (Kristine Hoffmann, Fred Fisher, Dara Wald) attended to the panels for the NAP and SEEP kiosks and for the signs along the SEEP Trail. To continue their design work during the Spring Semester of 2007, the two trios applied for and received $500 minigrants.
Personnel
Mark Clark, Advisor to the Wetlands Club, was in charge of the development of the SEEP Trail, and T. J. Walker, NAAC Administrative Assistant, saw to the development of the three upland trails. They were greatly assisted by NATL's Graduate Teaching Assistants Kevin Ratkus, Julian Resasco, and Jason Martin, by Undergraduate Assistants Tim Ruscello and Marissa Streifel, by members of the Wetlands Club, and by others who generously volunteered their time and talents.
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SEEP Wetland
The Stormwater Ecological Enhancement Project (SEEP) began in 1995 as a take-home final exam for the course Ecosystems of Florida. The objective was to develop a management plan to enhance a stormwater retention basin located within the University of Florida Natural Area and Teaching Lab (NATL) for species diversity while optimizing the basin’s use for research and education. Since then, the Wetlands Club at UF has taken this project further and implemented a full-scale created wetland that achieves not only the original objectives but also improves wildlife habitat, water quality, and aesthetics. These efforts have been in close coordination with the NATL Advisory Committee.
For more information on SEEP, see Wetland (SEEP).