Tucked away in the Pinellas National Wildlife Refuge is a natural jewel – Tarpon Key. A critical bird nesting site, the 180-acre island is home to brown pelicans, cormorants, ibis, herons and roseate spoonbills. In January a team of volunteers from Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, Audubon of Florida, Tampa Electric Company and the SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund rolled up their sleeves to help restore habitat for birds and other wildlife.

The “Tarpon Key Project” is a long-term conservation initiative involving Tampa Bay Watch, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Pinellas National Wildlife Refuge and Restore America’s Estuaries, an organization committed to protecting and preserving coastal habitat through community and citizen action. In 2006, the SeaWorld & Busch Gardens Conservation Fund donated $15,000 to Restore America’s Estuaries to focus on estuarine habitats in two regions facing increasing pressure – Tampa Bay and Southern California.

The team that took to Tarpon Key’s shores in late January helped relieve some of that pressure by giving a much-needed boost to the area’s natural systems. They installed 14 tons of new oyster bars and 3,000 salt marsh grasses, which will nourish the delicate ecosystem by providing bird and marine life with foraging areas and shelter.

To construct new shell bars that encourage oyster growth, volunteers filled mesh bags with 30 pounds of fossilized shells. The shell bars also will provide habitat for salt marsh plants and mangroves, reduce erosion and improve water quality through natural biological filtration. Volunteers positioned about 850 shell bags that will form the backbone of 220 feet of oyster bars.

“Participating in the conservation of our local habitat is not only a responsibility but it’s also a lot of fun,” said Bill Street, a Tarpon Key volunteer and director of education at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay. “The work that the Busch Gardens staff is doing today reminds us that we can all make a difference. Our efforts here on this island will hopefully have a long-lasting impact on the overall health of Tampa Bay.”