Hurricane's fury can benefit wetlands, such as Myakka River State Park

Hurricane Milton significantly impacted Myakka River State Park, downing and damaging trees. With water levels in the park already high since Tropical Storm Debby, Myakka’s floodplain marshes overflowed, flooding most roads in the park.

Thankfully, overall damage was substantially less than resulted from Hurricane Ian. Infrastructure impact to the park, which is minimally developed by design, was relatively minor.

Hurricanes bring with them a fury of strong wind, drenching rain, and even tornadoes. By rapidly driving natural ecological processes such as erosion, debris deposition and vegetational succession, they play an important role in shaping healthy, albeit dramatically changed, ecosystems.

When trees are downed, a hammock’s canopy opens, allowing different plants to grow due to increased sunlight. This process supports new growth as well as biodiversity.

Heavy rainfall, as hurricanes travel inland, increases the levels of water in streams, rivers and floodplains. As these waters flow through a watershed, they bring with them a mixture of freshwater, organic matter, nutrients and sediments. Scientists have found that hurricane-driven redistribution of organic matter in soils provides nutrients needed for natural communities to bounce back from severe storm impacts. By flushing out floodplains, water helps create new plant and wildlife habitats.

Scientists have long predicted that climate change would increase the frequency of extreme rainfall events. In a warmer world, there is simply more moisture in the air above water and land. Natural communities therefore have less time to recover between storms, with major implications for ecosystem stability. Moreover, damaged ecosystems don’t bounce back as quickly as they used to because their resilience has been degraded, especially by human development.

With development rapidly encroaching on Myakka River State Park, there is a rising threat of degraded ecosystems and water quality from floodwaters contaminated by pollutants such as fertilizer, pesticides, oil, and bacteria. To protect the park and the river, maintaining adequate buffers from existing and potential development is of utmost importance.

Friends of Myakka River exists to support Myakka River State Park and the Wild and Scenic Myakka River. Together, they are protecting and sharing Myakka’s Magic, to the benefit of future generations. Follow at @FriendsofMyakkaRiver.