Tourism has remained strong, despite a state-wide down trend. People chose to vacation here for its reduced density, its clean and uncommercial beaches, and of course its shells, fish, birds and other wildlife. Other communities may have the beaches and the climate but none have the rich tapestry of life woven in and around the community itself. Cities all over the world can achieve high levels of natural resource protection, but not without the hearts, minds and resources of its citizens. The living testimony is the coexistence of wildlife and humans on this small barrier island.
Great egrets walk along the busiest road, seeking anoles for food.
Roseate spoonbills flock by the hundreds to the mudflats adjacent to the bayside mangrove forest. Bobcats rear their young among the interior freshwater wetlands and ridges. Residents stop traffic to assist a gopher tortoise in crossing the road unharmed. Protection of natural resources must be a civic responsibility for a program such as Sanibel's to survive. It begins with awareness and education.