Florida is widely considered the birthplace of the American cowboy, with a cattle ranching tradition stretching back more than 500 years but that history is under threat as development swallows the open land that made it possib le.Jim Strickland, a 6th-generation Florida rancher, works Blackbeard Ranch in Myakka City, carrying on a tradition that began roughly 40 miles south of his property, where Spanish conquistador Ponce de Len introduced the first cattle in North America in 1521.Strickland and his wife, Julie Morris, the executive director of the Florida Conservation Group, are working to ensure that history survives another 500 years."About 40 miles south of here were the first cattle in North America in 1521," Strickland said.Florida cowboys have worked the land for centuries, but the pressures they face are unlike anything their ancestors encountered.Jim, what would it be like for you if we started just losing ranches in Florida left and right? Tampa Bay 28 reporter Michael Paluska asked."Well, we are. Personally, I've had a lot of leased land that over 100,000 acres I've had leased is now in development, so we know that development is imminent, we know it's coming," Strickland said. "Nearly every housing development in Florida used to be a cattle ranch.Paluska has reported on the loss of wild spaces and the race to save them.Strickland said ranchers across the state have applied for conservation easementsthe problem is there arent enough funds to buy them and add them to the Florida Wildlife Corridor.We have ranchers that want to save this green space. It would take, if I remember right, $3 billion if we were to purchase every conservation easement that people have elected to put applications in, Strickland said. So it shows there's a great desire from the ranchers and the timber people to save these lands.We have well over 500 folks that have just signed up in the last few years, 600,000 acres, Morris said. On another list, we have almost a million acres of folks that have signed up that have said, Look, we are willing to sell our development rights, we are willing to keep this intact. This land stays on the tax rolls. It stays in production. That green space is for everybody; that wildlife and clean water is for everybody.Morris said the ranches that remain are critical not just to agriculture, but to Florida's natural heritage. "The ranches that we have now are what most closely mimics that historical landscape before, you know, before you know people ever set foot here," Morris said. "Some of the most threatened and endangered species in our state only exist on these private ranch lands.The threats to ranching go far beyond development. Florida's ranchers contend with drought, extreme heat, hurricanes, and parasitic disease."We have the threat of foot and mouth disease, or recently, like New World screwworm, that could devastate our industry. That's tough," Morris said.Lightning is also a constant danger. Strickland recalled losing 17 head of cattle to a single strike under an oak tree cattle he had just purchased out of Texas.He also described being struck himself at 13 years old."The next thing I know, I woke up, and every horse was down, every man was down, Strickland said. "It killed our foreman."Despite the hardships, Strickland and Morris say the work is worth it for themselves, for the land, and for the generations that will follow."Why not protect the source and the core and the heart and the soul of Florida?" Strickland said."I think it's perfect for us and our children to see them grow up, and hopefully they all want to do the same thing that she and I love to do," Strickland said.When America turns 500 years old, what do you want Florida to look like? Paluska asked."What do you see over my shoulder? I want, I want to have those opportunities that we know what is behind your shoulders," Strickland said.But, even on the hardest days, the reward is undeniable.On a day like today with y'all, you know, filming us, a beautiful day in Florida, it's not raining. This is this. These are the good times. These are the good days when you appreciate what we do," Strickland said. ...read more read less