The Institute for Regional Conservation

The Institute for Regional Conservation Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from The Institute for Regional Conservation, Nonprofit Organization, Delray Beach, FL.

A non-profit , The Institute for Regional Conservation (IRC) is dedicated to the protection, restoration, and long-term management of biodiversity on a regional basis, and to the prevention of regional extinctions of rare plants, animals and ecosystems.

Happy !These are two different species of airplants 🍃. Here in South Florida, there are 16 native airplant, or bromelia...
06/05/2026

Happy !

These are two different species of airplants 🍃. Here in South Florida, there are 16 native airplant, or bromeliad species! The ones featured are the twisted airplant (Tillandisa flexuosa) and the spreading airplant (Tillandsia utriculata). They are epiphytes, meaning the plants grow on another host plant, such as trees 🌳, and obtain moisture from the air around them! Many bromeliad species have hairs called 'trichomes', which aid in absorbing water💧 and nutrients from its environment! While these plants do grow on trees, they have no effect on the health of the tree and don't take nutrients from them 💚. Importantly, the twisted airplant is threatened in Florida, and the spreading airplant is endangered in the state as well. Ten of our native airplants are listed as threatened or endangered ⚠️, and by conserving land and promoting preservation of natural habitats, these special plants can persist!
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Photo credits to Eric Gomez Gonzalez
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Happy Wednesday with Shoreline Seapurslane 🩷!Sesuvium portulacastrum is a low-growing vining plant found across Florida'...
06/03/2026

Happy Wednesday with Shoreline Seapurslane 🩷!

Sesuvium portulacastrum is a low-growing vining plant found across Florida's coastlines. It is found throughout coastal dunes and forests, and is known to be a great restoration plant! Shoreline seapurslane helps keep coastal dunes from eroding, and can withstand seawater and strong winds 💪! Fun fact: this plant's leaves are edible, and can be pickled; they have a strong salty flavor. Additionally, this wildflower is loved by many pollinators such as bees and butterflies, especially the Miami blue butterfly. Check out our Natives for Your Neighborhood website to see if this great wildflower can be planted in your backyard!
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Photo credits to Elena Landsea
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Check out this Strangler Fig this From the Field Friday! 🌱Ficus aurea is a unique native tree found in South and Central...
05/29/2026

Check out this Strangler Fig this From the Field Friday! 🌱

Ficus aurea is a unique native tree found in South and Central Florida, and one of the few native figs to the state. It is found in hammocks and swamps as well, growing on cypress or sabal palms. It begins as an epiphyte, living on another tree like an orchid or air plant does. But, the strangler fig then sends down roots into the ground, and quickly takes over its host tree! In time, the host tree will die and the strangler fig will become a full-fledged tree in its place, making it a parasitic tree! Like many other figs, strangler figs are pollinated only by a wasp that reproduces in fig flowers, Pegoscapus mexicanus. These trees are also amazing for wildlife, with its figs providing food for tons of birds 🐦 and supporting a wide variety of insects. In fact, it is the larval host for ruddy daggerwing butterflies 🦋 and fig sphinx moths too!
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Photo credit to Eric Gonzalez-Gomez
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Meet the Jamaican Caper this Wednesday!AKA Quadrella cynophallophora, this flowering shrub is a relative of the plant ed...
05/27/2026

Meet the Jamaican Caper this Wednesday!

AKA Quadrella cynophallophora, this flowering shrub is a relative of the plant edible capers (its unripe flower buds)! The Jamaican caper's flowers are striking and start out white, but over the course of a day, they turn bright pink 🩷. This shrub is amazing for landscaping, attracting wildlife, and is a larval host for the Florida white butterfly! This Florida native is found along the Southeast and Southwest coast, and thrives in coastal hammocks right along the water 🌊.
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Photo credits to Elena Landsea
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Thank you to everyone who came to our last volunteering event! At South Beach, our volunteers helped to remove a ton of ...
05/26/2026

Thank you to everyone who came to our last volunteering event!

At South Beach, our volunteers helped to remove a ton of pesky invasives and overgrown species in the beach's coastal dune 🏖️ such as beach naupaka. Thank you again to our volunteers for their hard work, and to the City of Boca Raton for supporting our restoration efforts 💚!
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Meet the small but mighty Narrowleaf Blueeyed-grass 💙Also known as Sisyrinchium angustifolium, this wildflower is found ...
05/20/2026

Meet the small but mighty Narrowleaf Blueeyed-grass 💙

Also known as Sisyrinchium angustifolium, this wildflower is found in many habitats in Florida! It’s very common in pine rocklands and wetter environments. While its appearance and name suggest this plant is a grass, it is a fantastic groundcover that has these showy blue-purple blooms in the spring! It is adaptable to many conditions, but prefers lots of sunlight and moist habitats like wet flatwoods. Check out Natives for Your Neighborhood to see if this wildflower thrives in your yard 🌱.

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Photo Credits to Sebastian Fernandez
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Calling all Boca Raton volunteers! 📣Sign up to join the Institute for Regional Conservation and the City of Boca Raton t...
05/20/2026

Calling all Boca Raton volunteers! 📣

Sign up to join the Institute for Regional Conservation and the City of Boca Raton to help restore the biodiversity of South Beach Park!

Time:
Saturday, June 13th from 9 am - 11 am

Place:
South Beach Park (400 N A1A Ocean Blvd, Boca Raton, Florida)

To Volunteer:
Head to regionalconservation.org/ircs/Events.asp to sign up!

Join us for this fun event where volunteers will remove pesky invasives, and help restore native plants to the coastal dune ecosystem of South Beach Park. Our efforts will enhance overall ecosystem health of the park 💚!
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Today we are visited by a Gulf Fritillary Butterfly!This is Agraulis vanillae, a commonly seen butterfly species in Flor...
05/15/2026

Today we are visited by a Gulf Fritillary Butterfly!

This is Agraulis vanillae, a commonly seen butterfly species in Florida 🦋. They are known to particularly love passionflowers, visiting such plants as purple passionflower, corkystem passionflower, and yellow passionflower; all are a host plant for the butterfly! They are also known to visit a wide variety of wildflowers, helping pollinate many of them. They are found in Florida and Texas, and then migrate to North Carolina and Alabama to breed when it is warmer ☀️.
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Photo credits to Michael Kohner
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Happy Wildflower Wednesday with Candyroot 🍬!Aka Polygala nana, this is a unique wildflower found in most of Florida. It ...
05/13/2026

Happy Wildflower Wednesday with Candyroot 🍬!

Aka Polygala nana, this is a unique wildflower found in most of Florida. It thrives in flatwoods, pinelands, and wet prairies. Fun fact: this plant gets its common name from its edible roots tasting like licorice when chewed! These blooms can be seen most commonly from the spring until summer, but can also be spotted year-round in southern populations. Its seeds are actually spread by ants, who collect the seeds and bring them to anthills for food!
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Photo credits to Michael Kohner
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Address

Delray Beach, FL
33483

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

3052476547

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