SHARE:
Friday's Daily Pulse
What you need to know about Florida today
› Lee County Port Authority authority hires new executive
Laura Rhoad joined Lee County Port Authority as director of human resources. According to a press release, she will oversee all activities related to employee matters at Southwest Florida International Airport and Page Field in Fort Myers.
› Researchers: Pythons changed mosquito's diet in Everglades
University of Florida researchers have more data showing invasive Burmese pythons decimating populations of native mammals in the Everglades. As a result, one of the only mammals left in the Everglades for mosquitoes to bite is the hispid cotton rat, a rodent which hosts a mosquito-borne virus called the Everglades virus. “As far as I am aware, this is the first time that researchers have found that an invasive predator (such as the python) has caused an increase in contact between mosquitoes and hosts of a human pathogen,” said Nathan Burkett-Cadena, a UF/IFAS assistant professor of entomology.
› 16th Annual Black Expo Florida organizers hope to draw 14,000 to Jacksonville weekend event
The 16th annual Florida Black Expo weekend is set to envelope downtown Jacksonville this weekend as organizers are expecting as many as 14,000 people to attend.
› Florida's closed primaries confuse voters, Broward elections head tells state committee
As Florida's population grows and more residents shun traditional party affiliations, voters are befuddled, if not angry, about the state's closed-primary system, including the use of write-in candidates, three local elections supervisors testified.
In case you missed it:
