LOOK AT THAT FACE

I might as well name this cutie NO NAME. Slashy and NO NAME are still here in my water. I went out tonight and NO NAME instantly came over to my kayak for an intimate visit. We interacted for at least 45 minutes then I finally left. No NAME likes to nudge my kayak rudder and gently swims under my kayak going back and forth. Every so often he/she ? comes up to my hand or foot and touches me. OH SO DELICIOUS!

FOUR BEST FRIENDS

i went out kayaking this evening and spotted 4 manatee off my dock. it was slashy, the unnamed child and two others who I don't personally know.. unnamed likes to hang out with me. i just quietly sit in my kayak and he interacts as he wants to, on his own. he likes to nudge my feet. he stays with me as long as i am there. sometimes i think manatees think my yak is another manatee, it is gray and close to the shape of a manatee. ran into neighbors, it was a nice social evening on the water.

Brent and the Conch

I hope I can do this quickly. I have to go to the park for my manatee encounter programs today. B is comming with me to observe. I'm nervous. I will have him take pics. Hopefully the girls will cooperate.
Had a great father's day. Ended up somehow at caladesi island. just happened they put on an extra ferry so we hopped on. B is holding this conch I found with my feet, I thought is was a huge rock, so I surfaced dived, with my goggles on and found two of these comingled. THey seperated and I handed one two K who got scared when it squirted water. He dropped his , but I managed to get back to shore to show b. We photographed this living monster and I gently returned it to its origins.
Went to see praire home comp. after the beach.. wasn't sure if I liked it, but then decided I really loved it.


PROGRESS OF MY BUTTERFLY GARDEN. i actually have a butterfly!






I have more to say, but I have to go..talk to you later

Happy Father's day dragon fly man

so it seems every morning this guy visits my oak tree. hope your not getting bored with hawk pictures.

yesterday ken and i went yaking upriver. It was a lovely trip. We actually witnessed law enforcement. A sheriff on a skido giving a group of people in blue rental boats (the most hated) a ticket for alcohol possession. YEAH!!!
We lounged on a beach upriver, past knees beach. This beautiful dragonfly landed on ken's big toe. You talk about the beautiful and the ugly.



I am always amazed at the blue on these dragonflies.

Did some level 200 swimming,see previous post, nothing too strenuous.

On the way home I met 2 very nice woman. One is known as kayak Julie, much the same way I am know as Kayak J...,The other is a close neighbor with a similar lifestyle.
I am going to reach out. New friends are always nice.

I am sorry to report no manatee stories. People were saying there was a group of nine hanging out where the river meets the gulf. I wonder if it was a mating group?
Perhaps today I will go downriver and check it out.
It is father's day so we get to do what k wants. Maybe I can persuade him to kayak. Do you think so?

Slashy and child

Happy B-day Mz. Ivy. I love you very much, as much as I love manatees!

hey James, thanks for your condolences, checked on the green heron chick today and it is fine.

Erin-I am sad I missed your call today.

I always love everyone's comments. It makes me know there are people out there actually reading this stuff.

Went out yakking today, called a couple of fellow yakkers to see if they wanted to go, no one was around. So off I went. Save the manatees sent me a bunch of pamphlets regarding manatee manners and I handed them out to rental boats today on the river. Everyone seemed very interested. It was very beautiful out on the river today, not busy, very blue. I went swimming at the corner, it was clear and cool.

These two guys are hanging by my house today. It is Slashy and another child, I don't know who it is. Curious, but not overly friendly, GOOD. One of the pics show how the kids hug the moms. Very sweet.

In case you didn't know. I love manatees.

Little guy

Hey this is the little green heron I have pictured in previous postings.

He survived the storm.

Still hanging out by his nest, but not in it anymore. He is just about fully feathered out, but there is still some down by his lower back. I took this picture today.

Went kayaking today and the river looked like it got a bath. The river is very very crystal clear. We had a very high tide after the storm and I think it scrubbed the river. It was truly magnificant.

No manatees around. I think they went out to the gulf for safety from the hurricane.

Brent made delicious clams with a butter/beer sauce tonight. He is trying to learn to cook and a great cook he is becoming.

Talked to Save the Manatees, they sent me a bunch of handouts. At first I thought I would put them at the boat rental place, but now I think I will give them out to people on the river while I am kayaking. The save the manatee lady also gave me great manatee counseling and told me I was making a difference.

Talk to you later, good night 

BEAUTIFUL SWIMMER

we all survived the storm. it was really no big deal

lost electricity for 2 hours, higher than normal tide

thank you for you concern

Red shouldered hawk, storm preparation

I took this picture at dusk tonight. He was in the Oak Tree by my deck.
My very bestest friend from my ol life, Vicky gave me a very cool wind up radio. Well I took it out of it's box for the first time today and set it up.
A storm is heading here and we have a voluntary evacuation. I am not leaving, not for this one. The kitties are in the house safe and sound and I have all the supplies set up.
I just hope it doesn't his during the night I crawled up on a ladder this morning in a torrential down pour and cleaned gutters. Took care of the boat and kayaks. I think they are all safe and sound. I am ready, bring it on.
Tomorrow I have the state park. I wonder if it will be too bad to go. I am sure they can use all the extra help they can have.
B is coming home from Phoenix tomorrow. K is in Buffalo. Movement of people.
Wish me luck for tonight, goodnight 

2 woodpeckers

By the way, here are two pileated woodpeckers I spoted in a tree next to my house 

Life and death on the river

HUMPY'S BABY AT MY KAYAK...VERY BAD MANATEE

So you know how I have been posting the pictures of the cute baby green herons? I went over to the nest yesterday only to discover one of them dead in the nest. I was saddened but, if you can believe this, not hysterical. The baby died in his nest, the other birdy baby is fine. I wonder if the one that died was the weak one. He never left the nest the way the other one did. We are supposed to get a bunch of rain from that darn tropical storm. I hope that doesn't harm him.

Cousin A , Ken and I went yaking today, swam at the corner, I did the usual, surface diving, amphibious swimming. THere was bunch of talk from fellow boaters and yakkers about the 2 manatees upstream, a mom and baby. Could it be my beloved humpy and babe? We traveled upstream to a narrow part of the river and it was those two, just hanging out eating grass. Oh god, the river was so so narrow, how could a boat not hit one or both of them? I can't stand the thought. Humpy has a new prop mark, the baby, well that very bad baby, has grown, nearly doubled in size I would say. That baby has become very friendly. He came right up to my kayak and demanded attention, cute but not good. He's gonna die. I pushed him away from me. We stayed with them, warning boaters of their presence, until this huge storm came bearing down on us. It rained so hard all the way home. It was really a great feeling..Exhilarating, we laughed all the way home and then jumped in the hot tub to take the chill off.
But my deep care and concern of humpy and baby sticks with me like a fresh wound. I just want people to respect the manatees on the river, Can it ever happen?

Tomorrow I am calling Save the Manatees to see what I can do to help with this huge controversy about taking them off endagered list.

I AM SICK, THIS WORLD IS NUTS

I am sick over this, but I didn't expect any other decision.

From Save The Manatees:

Yesterday, the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) at its regular quarterly meeting in West Palm Beach, Florida, ignored public outcry and voted to downlist manatees from “Endangered” status to “Threatened” over the objections of numerous scientists and manatee advocates. Last week, seventeen conservation, animal welfare, and public interest groups from Florida and around the nation filed a legal petition with the FWC urging the state to revise its imperiled species classification system and also asking the agency to delay any species’ reclassifications, like the manatee’s, that recommended a lesser status of imperilment.

The action of the FWC may prevent the actual recovery of the manatee population and the conservation community fears that the same fate may await other at-risk species in Florida like the northern right whale, Florida panther, and Florida black bear

Manatees,Birds and Flowers- pictures galore

These are the baby green herons that I took pics of a week or so ago. My have they grown. I am so happy they are surviving. There are so many dangers out there for them. Snakes, gators,turtles, fish and hawks etc would all love a meal of these guys.
Here is a red shoulder hawk next to my deck.
This is a pic of my plumeria in blossom. The plumeria was a gift from my bestest kayak buddy, Kayak Joyce2. I am very surprised and quite delighted it is blossoming.
I have been given the honor of caring for my favorite sister's, Renee, jasmine plant. I am trying my extra special hardest to take as good care of it as nee nee did. Well guess what? It is blossoming!

And finally but, as you all know, not leastly, MY MANATEES:
This poor guy was off my dock the other day. I haven't seen scrapes on a manatees back like this before. Pretty nasty, but not red or fresh, thank goodness. I am going to call this one scrapey.

I went kayaking with K. my neighbor today. She is my dear, close friend. Our kayak trips are always filled with lively discussions.We stopped at bad tree beach and hung out for quite a while talking and I did some amphibious crawling. No goggles or surface diving today the river was pretty mucky from traffic. It was great to be out kayaking.

Please remember to call J. Bush and Fish and Wildlife tomorrow June 6 . They want to take manatees and the bald eagle off the endagered list in Florida. See my last post for the phone numbers. Leave a comment for me if you call please.

Megan, Tomorrow is my talk, I will be sure to leave a detailed report for you. I hope all goes well. Those 6 girls better show up for their vitamins. I get a little nervous ahead of time. And James, thanks for putting me on your blog sight.

Night everyone!

This is SO important, phone numbers included!

I received this message from SAVE THE MANATEES.

Please help, one person can make a difference.

On Tuesday, June 6th, please remember to call the FWC Commissioners and Governor Jeb Bush and say the following: Please delay the decision on downlisting manatees and delisting bald eagles until the state fixes their imperiled species classification system.

Phone Numbers:
FWC Commissioners: 850-487-3796

Governor Jeb Bush: 850-488-7146


On Wednesday, June 7th, the FWC Commissioners will meet and vote on whether to downlist manatees in Florida.
If you live in Florida, please attend: West Palm Beach Marriott1001 Okeechobee BlvdWest Palm Beach, FL 33401Phone: 561-833-1234

There is no “time certain” for our issue, however, it appears from FWCC’s agenda that the manatee downlisting discussion and vote will come up on June 7 by early or mid afternoon.
If you plan to attend the meeting, please call Janice Nearing, Director of Public Relations, at 1-800-432-5646 or e-mail jnearing@savethemanatee.org.

Thank you for helping on this critical issue for manatees!

Belated Birthday Wish

I know I am 40 minutes late, hope you will forgive me, JP

Picture of heron from lastnight.

This is the picture of the Heron I took last night at dusk.
What kind is it?

YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE, PLEASE HELP THE MANATEES

I JUST RECEIVED THIS FROM SAVE THE MANATEES

Citizen's Call-In Day! PHONE NUMBERS INCLUDED IN THIS POSTING

CALL COMMISSIONERS AND GOVERNOR BUSH ON JUNE 6TH IN SUPPORT OF FLORIDA'S IMPERILED SPECIES
Next week, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) will vote to downlist manatees and remove bald eagles from Florida 's imperiled species list.

Using a flawed classification system (see more information below), the FWC has already downlisted the red-cockaded woodpecker despite opposition from many scientists.
If the current classification system is not changed, many of Florida's at-risk species could suffer the same fate as the woodpecker, resulting in less protection and misleading the public into thinking these species have recovered.

In 5 years, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, Florida will surpass New York to become the 3rd most populous state in the U.S. The state is rapidly being developed, and Florida's at-risk species need all the protection they can get!

What You Can Do:
It is critically important that the FWC Commissioners and Florida Governor Jeb Bush hear from all state, national, and international residents on this issue.

Please join with other concerned citizens by calling the Commissioners and Governor Bush on Tuesday, June 6th and ask your friends, relatives, and colleagues to do the same.

It only takes about 3 minutes of your time, but the results could last a lifetime.

ACTION: On Tuesday, June 6th, please call the FWC Commissioners and Governor Jeb Bush and say the following:
Please delay the decision on downlisting manatees and delisting bald eagles until the state fixes their imperiled species classification system.

PHONE NUMBERS:
FWC Commissioners: 850-487-3796
Governor Jeb Bush: 850-488-7146

Thank you for helping to ensure that Florida's imperiled species get the proper protection they deserve!

More Background on This Issue:-In 2005, the FWC modified its classification system to incorporate the listing criteria of the World Conservation Union (IUCN), a world authority on endangered species, except for one critical difference: The FWC did not properly align the IUCN's risk categories with the IUCN's category names and definitions. -The IUCN's "Critically Endangered" category became the FWC's "Endangered" category. The IUCN's "Endangered" category became FWC's "Threatened" category. The IUCN's third category of "Vulnerable," is considered the FWC's "Species of Special Concern." -If the FWC had adopted the IUCN classification system without modification, the manatee would continue to meet the criteria for "Endangered" status.

State biologists have said the manatee population could decrease by half in the next 45 years from rising threats to its long-term survival.-

There has been a 17% increase in manatee mortality from boat collisions in the last 5-year period (2001-2005) as compared to the previous 5-year period (1996-2000). -Under the current FWC classification system, a species would have to undergo, or be at risk of undergoing, at least an 80% decline in population in order to be listed as "Endangered" in Florida.

For a slow-maturing species such as sea turtles that take up to 35 years to reach reproductive age, recovering a population that has declined by 80% would be extremely difficult if not nearly impossible.-A species losing nearly 30% of its population over ten years probably would not even make it onto the FWC “Species of Special Concern” list. -As species like the manatee are reclassified to a lesser imperiled status before their populations have actually recovered, state funding for research, management, and law enforcement will likely be directed elsewhere, preventing full recovery.-Many of Florida's species will be downlisted or even delisted, not because their biological status has changed, but simply because the listing criteria used by the FWC has changed.