Overview
The Santa Fe College Teaching Zoo prides itself on its continuing efforts to save endangered species, no matter how big or small. Living on a barrier island in the Gulf of Mexico that stretches across the Florida panhandle and into Alabama, the Perdido Key beach mouse plays an important role in preserving its home. These busy builders store seeds and oats in their burrows, with many uneaten seeds growing to adult plants. These plants help to stabilize the sand dunes, in turn providing protection for coastal communities from hurricanes. Due to habitat loss, non-native predators and threats from hurricanes, they are listed as an endangered species. Zoos accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, including the SF Teaching Zoo, Brevard Zoo, Palm Beach Zoo and Smithsonian's National Zoo partnered with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) to develop a breeding and release program. Through our collective efforts, mice bred in human care have been released back onto Perdido Key. These mice have successfully reproduced, increasing the population on the key. Current monitoring and tracking has shown that the population is continuing to grow in the wild!
Learn more about how conservation organizations collaborate to save this species from SF Teaching Zoo General Curator and Perdido Key Beach Mouse Species Survival Program Coordinator, Kathy Russell.