NARRATOR Just seven miles north of Brooksville, Colonel Raymond Robins built his handsome home on nearby Chinsegut Hill in the early 1900’s and began restoring the surrounding agricultural lands. NARRATOR In 1932 Colonel Robins donated his land to the government for agricultural research and to serve as a wildlife refuge and a center for Floridians to learn about conserving our wildlife legacy. NARRATOR Today, visitors can explore Chinsegut Wildlife and Environmental Area on miles of trails and experience its expansive wetlands, abundant wildlife and scenic beauty. NARRATOR The area’s mosaic of diverse habitats are attractive to many wildlife species. NARRATOR More than 10,000 people from throughout the region attend Chinsegut’s programs each year. FEMALE BIOLOGIST (STARTING OFF CAMERA) This is the state butterfly of Florida. This is an oak, one of the oaks, they don’t have any points to them like the Laurel Oak. More desirable by turkey and deer. MALE BIOLOGIST … they’re in a wire basket … Oh my goodness .. CUB SCOUT … like a million frogs in there. MALE BIOLOGIST This is a very special species. Take a good look at it. And this gentleman is a gopher frog. NARRATOR Year round, day and night, biologists share their knowledge about wildlife and wildlife management. MALE BIOLOGIST Oh yeah, we have a nice male cardinal here. And cardinals are territorial and so I’m assuming that this is the mate of the female we captured this morning. MALE VOLUNTEER They started the fire here on the back line, they let it creep in about twenty or thirty feed until they had what they call a good black line … FEMALE BIOLOGIST (OFF CAMERA) But sometimes you’ll put your hand out and they’ll just land. MALE BIOLOGIST Again, they’re just perching … NARRATOR Native plant identification and wildlife viewing classes are popular at Chinsegut. MALE BIOLOGIST And again here’s some more, the big bluet, the sandhill bluet, so it’s not just as easy as going “Oh, it’s a little blue …” NARRATOR Thousands of participants hone their skills at one of Chinsegut’s most popular programs. MALE BIOLOGIST (STARTING OFF CAMERA) These guys just arrived. Scarlet tanagers are transients, they’re passing through right now on their way north. NARRATOR A variety of festivals celebrate our cultural connections to the land. NARRATOR Chinsegut is a center for the community. NARRATOR Partnerships with dozens of conservation organizations and hundreds of volunteers make Chinsegut’s programs possible. NARRATOR Volunteers donate thousands of hours sharing their time and talents with visitors. NARRATOR Generations come together, far from the distraction of electronic games … MALE VOLUNTEER Real light now you ain’t gotta push hard … NARRATOR … giving the younger generation an up close and personal hand-on learning experiences. FEMALE BIOLOGIST (STARTING OFF CAMERA) Some of them like the Cuban tree frog are hitchhikers. They hitchhike here in cargo. The predator that’s that big can have a huge impact on a native species. They were introduced originally … MALE BIOLOGIST … no, toads are yucky. Toads are poisonous. … using their head like a shovel. And they will even prove to you that they are dead. FEMALE BIOLOGIST … everybody’s nodding their head. You bike hike or camp near the woods and you’re listening to owls … you’re listening to these guys. MALE BIOLOGIST They extend all along the Gulf Coast states and Florida … BOY SCOUT (OFF CAMERA) His claws are huge … how old? MALE BIOLOGIST He’s only a couple of years old. An alligator this size in the wild would probably, you know, they’re capable of running … but … they don’t have a lot of … their legs are fairly small … NARRATOR Yesterday, today and tomorrow the FWC and Chinsegut Nature Center are continuing the Conservation Legacy.