Cape Coral Friends of Wildlife
Our Mission
Dedicated to Protection, Preservation and Education
Cape Coral Friends of Wildlife is a volunteer organization whose purpose is to preserve and enhance the habitats of protected wildlife species and to educate the community about Cape Coral’s wildlife resources.
Founded in 2001, we now have approximately 500 members and an engaged group of volunteers, board of directors and committees operating our unique events and programs. | About Us
Volunteer hours in the last year
Actions Speak Louder than Words!
Cape Coral Friends of Wildlife is a non-profit membership organization that relies on donations and fundraisers to help protect our wildlife in Cape Coral, Florida. All members are volunteers, with no paid positions.
Join/Renew Membership
Help support wildlife in Cape Coral by becoming a member, or renewing your existing membership.
Donate to CCFW
Make a tax deductible donation to support Cape Coral Friends of Wildlife and our mission to protect and educate.
Shop CCFW Merchandise
Get some unique apparel, wear your support for Cape Coral's wildlife and help further our mission by shopping CCFW merchandise.
Adopt an Owl
Adopt a Cape Coral Burrowing Owl to help fund burrow maintenance activities and other programs.
What’s at Stake
The Florida burrowing owl and gopher tortoise are designated a threatened species by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. The designation of Threatened is given to species whose prospects of survival are in jeopardy—in this case due largely to habitat loss.
Research has shown that gopher tortoise populations in Cape Coral represent a self-sustaining viable conservation unit that call for preservation of the natural and vacant lands they currently occupy.
The gopher tortoise is considered a “keystone species” with more than 350 other species using their burrows for shelter. If the tortoise burrows disappear, the ecosystem of wildlife that relies on them, will collapse.
Make a Difference
Join the Burrow Maintenance Crew
Here is an important way to help working directly with wildlife. Supplied with City maps, weed wackers, safety equipment, and lots of enthusiasm this group of dedicated volunteers trim burrow with high weeds, install PVC pipes and perches on newly found burrows, repair and clean up existing burrows. They also have obtained GPS coordinates for every known burrow and submitted this information to the City of Cape Coral to be put in the City data base.
Dig a Starter Burrow
As Cape Coral grows, there will be less and less empty lots for the Burrowing Owls to call home, and loss of habitat is a primary reason why Burrowing Owl populations decline. Fortunately there is a solution to habitat loss that is working quite well. Homeowners are being encouraged to put "starter" burrows on their front lawns.
Visit the Butterfly House
The Tom Allen Memorial Butterfly House is one of Cape Coral's top attractions and a labor of love for many CCFW volunteers.
Request a Speaker
CCFW volunteers are available to speak to students and civic associations about protecting Cape Coral's wildlife and habitats.
In the News
Future Forestry plants 100 trees at Veterans and Kamal Parkway
In hopes of “Planting it forward,” Future Forestry plants 100 trees along Veterans and Kamal Parkway.
Threatened burrowing owls number in the thousands in Cape Coral. Now they are being counted, protected
On this Sunday morning, Anderson and Collier are helping with the sixth annual census of Cape Coral’s 3,000-plus burrowing owls, the largest population in Florida – and likely on the planet.
Meet the Cape Coral resident who really gives a hoot about burrowing owls
Beverly Ahlering Saltonstall’s book “Cape Coral Burrowing Owls Don’t Hoot” tells you all you need to know about the tiny avian.
CROW rescues injured nestling Purple Martin
On May 16 the Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife (CROW) rescued an injured nestling Purple Martin that had fallen from its nest in Fort Myers.
Truck drives over lot littered with gopher tortoise burrows
Neighbors in one Cape Coral neighborhood say they’re keeping an eye out for a pick up truck caught on camera driving through an empty lot that’s bustling with gopher tortoise burrows.
CCFW’s annual Burrowing Owl Photo Contest
Enjoy snapping photos of wildlife or can’t get enough of the city’s official bird? The Cape Coral Friends of Wildlife is now accepting entries for its annual Burrowing Owl Photo Contest.
Beloved Cape Coral burrowing owl dies from suspected rat poison
A Cape Coral woman is heartbroken after finding a beloved burrowing owl lying on its face near its burrow in her front yard.
Burrowing owl dies in Cape Coral
Burrowing owls are a beloved part of wildlife, especially in Cape Coral. And now, there’s concern about their well-being after one beloved animal was found suffering.
Do Floridians have a right to clean water? Advocates working to change the state constitution
The storm left the birds without a place to go back to, and many of them were injured. The owls are all over our community, and without a home, they’ll become scarce.
Funny Owl Images
State requires lizard habitat upgrade; cage to cost $20,000
Green Day, an iguana that has lived 10-plus years at Rotary Park after falling out of a tree, will get a new cage that meets new state requirements related to invasive species.
Fight to save Green Day the Iguana’s life
A Cape Coral park’s main attraction is at risk of being euthanized if local groups and the city don’t act quickly.