This year we are focused on Nurturing What's Near- from state parks to our backyards we are fighting for Florida's native plants and ecosystems.

This year’s artwork features the Four-Petal Pawpaw and was painted by Emily Lanthier based on a photo from Palm Beach County Environmental Resource Management. The Four-Petal Pawpaw only occurs in Martin and Palm Beach Counties in Florida and it’s habitat has been severely limited due to development. This rare plant provides fruit for the gopher tortoise and is a host to zebra swallowtail butterfly larvae. The Four-Petal Pawpaw is federally endangered, but a few of it’s populations remain on private and protected lands in our area. Dr. Anne Cox put it best:

“Why does it matter if it goes extinct? Because it’s the canary in the coal mine. We need a diversity of plants, animals and microbes in the world. The more diversity you have, the better all of the systems are.” (Palm Beach Post, 2023)

MCFNPS has set a $500 goal for this campaign, which will be used to support the publication of Four-Petal Pawpaw research by Dr. Anne Cox.