Did you know:

• FOT started Tigertail Beach cleanups in 2006. There have been 2789 volunteers, 872 bags of trash, 27 tires, totaling 6825 pounds of trash, over 3 tons! Since 2012, 846 people have attended the Breakfast and Birds event!  
• Since 2012, Friends of Tigertail has awarded 24 Campership scholarships to school children!
• Since 2012, over 1532 people have attended the Friends of the Friends of Tigertail Discover Tigertail education programs!

Successful Beach Cleanup to end 2023

December 2, 2023

Drawing 32 volunteers, the last 2023 quarterly clean-up of Tigertail Beach hosted by Friends of Tigertail was held on Dec. 2, with 84 pounds of debris collected including two heavy tires.

Adults and students alike contributed to the effort, helping to improve the area for beach goers as well as wildlife. Clean-up statistics have been compiled by the Friends group since 2006, and just under 7,000 pounds of trash has been tallied to date.

Following the clean-up, Friends of Tigertail board members viewed the new cement bench on the lagoon beach, generously donated by Nancy Sineni, one of the group's founding members. See the picture below. This joins a memorial bench donated several years ago honoring another founder, Vincent Locasio. Friends of Tigertail was formed by a group of beach walkers who wanted to keep the area beautiful and educate others about it's unique natural features, and the legacy of the original members lives on today.

Excellent Turnout for International Coastal Clean-up at Tigertail Beach

September 16, 2023

FOT 2nd Breakfast and Birds in 2023 a huge success!

With so much wildlife in southwest Florida there is great interest in learning about other species living in the area. In the second and final "Breakfast and Birds" presentation this season hosted by Friends of Tigertail, an audience of 60 people listened as expert birders Susan Kubat and Fran Huxley reviewed many features about our avian neighbors, highlighting the species who spend the winter on our shores before migrating back to their northern summer homes to nest. Birds can be distinguished by their physical characteristics as well as behavior. The group learned these details before walking to the lagoon beach armed with binoculars to practice identification skills. Many avian species greeted the students, busily feeding. A brown pelican diving for fish and reddish egret dancing to stir up his breakfast were special treats.

This was the 20th Breakfast and Birds presentation sponsored by Friends of Tigertail, a group that is celebrating it's 25th anniversary this year with a mission to protect, preserve, and educate about Tigertail Beach.

Friends of Tigertail Add Benches to Tigertail Park Upgrades

Friends of Tigertail donated two benches to the Tigertail Beach Park, augmenting the recently upgraded playground area as well as the observation tower.

On Monday, August 16 a ceremony was held for the bench donation, with Friends of Tigertail Board members and Melissa Hennig, Regional Manager of Beaches and Water for the Collier County Parks and Recreation. The location of the benches will benefit park visitors, with one in the newly renovated playground area so that families can be comfortable watching their children at play, and the other bench placed on the lower level of the observation tower, creating a shaded perch to observe the beach below.

Friends of Tigertail is appreciative of the county's efforts in improving the park's facilities. The new playground is now state of the art, and will be enjoyed by many young park visitors. Through a grant from the Community Foundation of Collier County, a tall shade structure was added, providing relief from direct sun for the children.