+1 on the stick/ staff. I'd add some tall boots in snake country too...

I was down there in the general area when this incident occurred. Been hunting the 'glades and areas close to there for over 20 years now, and I grew up in SW Florida.

This incident was a topic of discussion in SW Florida among the outdoorsy types. Concensus amongst those I believe qualified to evaluate the situation (some who were on the ground searching) was the hunter panicked and didn't pause to think rationally, and was not prepared either with forthought or training, much less equipment. If he did stop and think it through, he probably would have been rescued the same night he got lost. Naturally the discussion soon revolved to what he should have had with him.

I'm offering the following descriptions and depictions in the hope this information might help someone in the future. It is incomplete in descriptions of hazards and the local wildlife, and I'm no botanist or wildlife expert. Your results may vary.

When hunting the glades, or anywhere in south florida for that matter, there are a few things to keep in mind, and a few things to always carry.

Climate: Hot, wet, most of the time. Deydration, heat stress, heat stroke is a very real danger, and most likely to occur.
Fauna: snakes, both native and nonnative, some poisionous, Crocodilians, (american crocodile (south west coast), Caiman, and american alligator (throughout the entire area)), deer, feral hogs, small mammals. Feral hogs and Crocidilians pose special dangers to humans, although unprovoked attacks are rare. The Florida Panther also has a presence there, but usually avoids human contact. Snakes pose a danger, but most locals I know are more worried about the insects. Black widow, brown recluse spiders, scorpions, wasps, hornets, ticks, bees, ants, and most particularly, mosquitoes.
Flora: lots of plants have thorns, but some plants or parts of plants are edible, cattails in particular, and in the northern sections, sugar cane may be found occassionally on abandoned sites. The dog fennel plant has some useful inseciticidal properties.
Communication: Cellular phones are not to be relied on 100%. Coverage is not reliable away from the interstate. SPOT is a
supposedly good alternative.

things to keep in mind in the 'glades:
1) Always have a plan with ETA and timeline left with someone who
will call for help if you do not check in. Those who have been in there would much rather do a rescue than a recovery.
2) The area is criss-crossed with canals, which provide open area on the banks to be seen from the air. Find one, gather some material and start a fire. use green grass once it's caught to make dense smoke. Smoke is visible in daylight and FLIR really picks up on fire at night. Be aware gators also like to use the banks for sunning.
3) I agree with TeacherRO, get a stick to scare but not aggravate the snakes and gators. Your most vicious encounter will likely be from brown marsh mosquitoes. (another reason to have a fire)
4) stay out of the water if you can.
5) Once you've found a spot that is reasonably cleared so that a helicopter or airplane can see you, don't leave. make a bigger fire. It may take time to get assistance in to your location, half a day or more in some cases. You may not even realize you've been spotted.
6) the further south you go, the more saline the water becomes.
7) while the water encountered may not be saline, it is contaminated to some degree.

Things I absolutely, positivly NEVER leave behind while traipsing through the 'glades. I put this in order of priority, it's my opinion. Your results may vary. Other than the gloves and blade, everything else fits into a zippered 4"x6" zippered notebook case, with room left over for a snack bar. I put the case itself into a ziplock bag and it fits a cargo pants leg pocket just fine. Other cargo pocket holds the gloves.

0) Your brain. cautious and slow is better than dangerous and fast. acknowledging you are lost is often accompanied by loss of
brainpower. No tool is more useful, and without it any other tool is useless.
1) Firesteel and striker. Yes, it's a swamp, but things will burn there. A small smoky fire will get help faster than just about anything non-electronic. (SPOT, cellphone, radio). Doesn't need butane, if it's dried off, it will spark a fire.
2) water purification pills. As long as you're more than a couple of miles north of the coast, the water is not saline enough to cause a problem. but it all has some contaminates in it. Last thing you want is diahrrea and heatstroke. Use some pills. The clearer the water is, the better the pills work. I keep at least 10 in my pouch.
3) a bandanna. keeps the sun off the noggin, and is also useful as a water pre-filter. (Stetson hat works as well)
4) 3 quart or half gallon Ziplock bags. Cut a corner of one, place the bandanna in it folded properly, and dip it into the water. use it as a strainer into the second ziplock bag. Add a water tablet and wait.
5) some kind of blade.
6) Insect repellant. I prefer individually sealed wipes, your results may vary. I also carry a small bug net if I'm hunting.
7) button compass. walking on flat land will always result in walking in circles. While it might not be accurate enough for orienteering, a simple button compass should keep you going reasonably straight to the nearest canal bank in your chosen direction.
8) 2 4"x4" sterile gauze pads and roughly 5 feet of duct tape wrapped around a business card. Just in case.
9) 3-4 BP powders. Hard to think when you've got a dehydration headache.
10) 6 immodium pills for diahrrea
11) 3 gatorade packets. Covers the taste of the water tabs and provides electrolytes.
12) Leather gloves. Palmettos have spines.
13) disposible poncho (unless other gear suffices)
14) Space blanket. not for heat necessarily, but for signalling.
15) Small packet of toilet paper. Don't use the leaves.

While in the woods: if you do eat anything, keep a sample for the rescuers to analyze just in case you made a mistake and ate the wrong thing..or didn't cook it enough. I'm not advocating eating ANYTHING in the Glades, but if you do..save a piece in case you have a reaction.

After the rescue: visit your regular physician soon for a checkup, particularly if you encountered heat stress conditions.
Educate youself about symptoms of mosquito borne diseases that are present in the Glades. If you do develop symptoms later, tell the physician immediately you were in the glades, do not wait for them to figure it out themselves.

Before I get critiqued over this, I do have a whistle on my keychain, but in discussions with search and rescue personnel and knowldge of their tactics, it will likely be a visual identification if one can get out to open ground, and start a small, smoky fire. One of the first things they do is send up a plane or helicopter, after the immediate 'last seen area' has been searched. The searchers on the ground would likely be in an airboat, on a swamp buggy, or riding an ATV. They likely wouldn't hear it before they saw you.

Wouldn't a signal mirror likely be useful? I would rather use a mirror (even the mirror on a full size compass) than a space blanket for signaling.

Hey you guys in FL, thanks for the firsthand info; it is very interesting. FL is so different from the terrain I'm usually in (Appalachian mountains). However as a young pup I lived in SE FL and used to go into the Glades with my dad. I would walk on the gravel roads built up next to the major canals. Tame by your standards but quite exciting to a 12 year old. I remember seeing t-storms far in the distance making their way across the sky over the grasses; awesome.

I just may need to make a trip down there (in winter!) to see it again.

Greytruck makes a good point - it is worthwhile, in the woods having a mental reference point - canals, rivers, roads etc - I'm usually aware that if all else fails, if I head say east, I'll hit a road. Might not be shortest route, but without GPS, map or compass, I at least have a bearing. Then I can use the sun, stars etc to guide me.

(Note - staying put is usually a better option, but 30 seconds with a map should identify some boundary to the area you are in to head towards)

hikermor: Signal mirror: A space blanket has one unique feature that most man portable mirrors do not. You can spread it out over a couple of plants or improvised stakes and get under it to keep the sun off you...also, having experienced the heat stress and almost heatstroke, the fine motor skills that I believe to be necessary to operate a mirror..aren't there. The space blanket it big enough and faceted to attract someone flying at 1500 feet and 80 knots. I'm not certain about operating a mirror under the same conditions. I've been told a space blanket does a pretty good mirror impression. But, I don't have first hand knowledge observing the results from above.

Also..bandanna..recommend against the CamoRambo..get a red or orange one. Much easier to see.

As far as being seen..no non-electronic device will help you more than a good small smoky fire. Often during the mornings there is a no wind condition for awhile.
A couple hundred foot column of grey/black smoke will be investigated quickly.

Your results may vary.

BigRedDog: As the brain cooks rapidly under heat..I'd go a step further, and print a google map and take it with me. mark north on it. doesn't have to be exact..eventually one will hit a road or a canal to walk along. That's just me. Of course, the Mark I mod 0 reasoning system must be somewhat intact or you might not read the compass correctly. The most important rule I think needs to be reinfored is keeping the brain out of lock-up mode.
If that's accomplished, then one might be able to get rescued with nothing at all, IF the individual has educated themselves on
basic survival-rescue techniques, and hopefully practiced a few beforehand.