We are putting together a swim in Crystal Springs, Fl. Sometime in the month of December 2008
It will be for three days on a Friday Saturday and Sunday, On Friday and Saturday there will be a shore and snorkle clean up and Sunday 8 hours with the Manatees...
Stay in touch for more info!!!
Make a New Friend and Adopt a Manatee!!
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Music
Art Work Done By: Peace Lily (in my top friends)
"Friendly Mermaid" Soft Pastels
Ocean ecosystems are in trouble all over the world, and the Bering Sea, source of half the seafood caught in the US, is no exception. The explosive growth of Alaska’s pollock fishery since the 1960s has been followed by major declines of the marine mammals that depend on pollock, including endangered steller sea lions, northern fur seals, and pacific harbor seals. Steller sea lion populations have dropped by almost 90%. People are suffering, too. Fishermen are traveling farther and farther offshore looking for fish and crab that were once plentiful right off the beach, facing increasing risks for diminishing returns.
Greenpeace is in the Bering Sea right now, conducting research and working with native communities to protect the ecosytems of the Bering. The Bering Sea is home to some of the largest submarine canyons in the world, unseen by human eyes and thought to be home to undiscovered creatures found nowhere else on earth. Greenpeace is exploring these canyon habitats with manned deep-sea submersibles as part of our effort to make a strong case for conservation of these threatened areas.
Migrating Manatees
Natural springs, such as Blue Spring on Florida's east coast, are winter refuges for endangered manatees. When the surrounding waterways get colder, manatees move into the springs to keep warm.
If you live “up north,” you know that fall has arrived when the leaves turn color and snow flurries signal the start of winter. In Florida, the changes are much more subtle. But we know for sure that winter has officially arrived when manatees appear at warm water sources around the state.
In spite of their size, manatees have relatively little body fat and cannot tolerate temperatures below 20° C (68° F).
Manatees need warm water to survive. In spite of their size, they have relatively little body fat, and their metabolic rate is low compared to other marine mammals. Manatees cannot tolerate temperatures below 20 ° C (68 ° F) for long periods of time. Researchers believe that individuals affected by the cold cannot produce enough metabolic heat to make up for heat loss in the environment. During winters in Florida that have been unusually cold, an increase in manatee mortality has been documented.
Seasonal Change
Because of their susceptibility to the cold, the space or range that manatees require is influenced by seasonal change. Florida manatees are considered to be somewhat migratory animals. Generally speaking, they are found in shallow, slow-moving rivers, bays, estuaries and coastal water ecosystems of the southeastern United States. They can live in fresh, brackish or salt water.
In the summer months, manatees travel freely around Florida’s rivers and coastal waters. A few manatees may range as far west as Texas and as far north as Virginia (one manatee was even documented in Cape Cod, Massachusetts!), but these sightings are rare. Sporadic summer sightings in Alabama, Georgia, and South Carolina are relatively common.
Range of the Florida Manatee
.... WINTER RANGE
__ SUMMER RANGE (common)
---- SUMMER RANGE (well documented, but relatively rare)
In the winter, usually November though March, the manatee population is concentrated primarily in Florida. Water temperatures that fall below 21° C (70° F) cause manatees to move into warm water refuge areas. Scientists don’t know what cues manatees follow, but they seem to know when cold weather is coming and seek warm water areas.
Travel corridors, or passageways, are necessary for manatees to move back and forth between summer and winter habitats or between feeding and resting or calving areas. It has been documented that many manatees have preferred habitats they return to each year.
Warm Water Gathering Areas
When the weather cools down, manatees gather near natural springs such as Blue Spring on the east coast of Florida or in the Crystal or Homosassa Rivers on Florida’s west coast. These springs are winter refuges for manatees because the water temperature is relatively constant throughout the year – averaging about 22 ° C (72° F). When the surrounding waterways get colder, manatees move into the springs to keep warm.
Manatees gather at the warm water effluent of Florida Power and Light Company's Riviera Beach power plant.
Manatees also gather at warm water effluents of power plants like the Tampa Electric Company in Apollo Beach or Florida Power & Light Company in Ft. Myers or Riviera Beach. Power plants have probably extended the manatee's winter range. At one time, researchers believe, manatees only ranged south of Sebastian Inlet and Charlotte Harbor in the winter. As coastal development pressures in southeast and southwest Florida have pushed manatees further north, power plant effluents have played a critical role in manatee protection.
Unfortunately, warm water sources for manatees are at risk of disappearing as aging power plants go offline and spring flows are affected by Florida’s growing human population and its water needs. Such loss of warm water habitat could result in catastrophic manatee die offs during cold winters. The maintenance of warm water refuges will be an important factor in the manatee's future survival potential. We need to make sure that spring flows are maintained and devise warm water alternatives before power plants go offline.
A C-Cow (and D-Cow)Tale
In The Florida Manatee, researchers Roger Reep and Bob Bonde relate the story of C-Cow and her calf D-Cow. The two manatees were tracked for several years by the U.S. Geological Survey Sirenia Project. Each summer, the mother and calf pair would hang out in Brevard County waters and travel south to power plants near Ft. Lauderdale in the winter. The year D-Cow was weaned, C-Cow moved south to the Ft. Lauderdale power plant at the first sign of cool weather. Two weeks later, another cold front also prompted D-Cow to depart, and he traveled to the same area. Over the years, the two manatees have been sighted many times as they follow the same migratory pattern.
Heroes
Seacology is the world's premier nonprofit, nongovernmental organization with the sole and unique purpose of preserving the environments and cultures of islands throughout the globe. Indigenous people are all too often faced with the dilemma of choosing between protecting their precious natural resources, and economic development. Seacology searches for win-win situations where both the local environment is protected and islanders receive some tangible benefit for doing so.
Save The Manatees! wishing everyone a wonderful year! Welcome all new friends, hugs and best wishes to all! Posted at 4:55 AM Jan 4 from Mobile view more
On each of these websites, you can click a button to support the cause -- each click creates funding, and costs you nothing! Bookmark these sites, and click once a day!
Who I'd like to meet:
Islamorada Welcomes Its Newest Resident:
A Brand New Manatee Calf!
Mom and her new calf. (Photo courtesty of J.C. Mikula)
By Suzanne Tarr, Staff Biologist
Residents of Islamorada, Florida were given a rare treat this April when they witnessed a mother with her hours-old calf. Alex Bryan was minding his own business at the end of a quiet canal in Islamorada when he noticed a large manatee swimming towards him. He watched it for a bit and eventually left to visit with some friends. A couple of days later, he saw the same manatee, but she was no longer alone. Next to the manatee was a tiny calf!
Manatee calves are dark gray/black and weigh around 50 pounds when they are born. Mothers may nurse their calves for up to two years, while teaching them the "rules of the road." This calf must have just been born only hours before, since Alex could see the placenta still attached to the mother. The calf bobbed for air, its tail curled from being inside the womb. Later, mom proudly displayed her calf as it cruised over her back. She nursed her new baby, seemingly unaware by excited onlookers. By Thursday morning, this duo was gone. Locals here hope they'll return on a regular basis...at least for brief visits.
Look at me! Newborn manatee calves are capable of swimming to the surface on their own and vocalize at or soon after birth. (Photo courtesty of J.C. Mikula)
I spoke with J.C. Mikula and the rest of the crew at a local outfitters company who were keeping a vigilant eye on the new mom and her calf. My main concern was that some people may feed and/or give the manatees water. J.C. noticed well-wishers getting ready to take out hose and gently reminded them that this was not a good idea. Alex also noticed some folks feeding the mom one night.
Feeding manatees or giving them water is never a good idea, as it teaches them bad habitats and may place them in harm's way, which is why it's against the law. We were particularly concerned that these two manatees would be disturbed during those first important bonding moments. If this mom and calf (or other manatees) return, we hope that Islamorada residents will remember to passively enjoy these special moments and let these wild manatees remain beautifully, truly, and safely wild.
We thank Alex, J.C., and his crew for being great stewards of Florida's endangered manatee and for sharing this amazing story.
Get more information on places where you can view manatees and tips to help protect them.
Cruising the canal. If you look closely, you can see the placenta still attached to the mother. (Photo courtesty of J.C. Mikula)
I made my first video slideshow and wanted to share it with you. The musician (Elizabeth Ann Middleton) is one I found through MySpace, and she generously let me use her music to set to my images. Visit her MySpace page here - http://www.myspace.com/pianorama - she's fantastic! :-)
Thanks for having joined the Scuba Diving Community as a friend. I hope to see you online soon in our community and share your experience with other divers as well as take advantage of all the information we have about scuba diving on the 3000+ pages. I wish you lots of safe and fun dives. Patrik
Rest for the Weary I am writing this in March of 2009 while the world is in a serious economic upheaval. Fortunes have been lost, retirement incomes are gone, and the basic necessities have become a struggle for many.
It is at times like these that I recall the simplicity of childhood and the safety of my mom and dad’s arms.
In truth, we assign too much importance to issues that, in the end, will be of no consequence. Have you ever heard of a man on his deathbed who asked to see his stock portfolio one more time? Could the time we spend worrying be better spent in quiet, soothing fellowship with the One who created it all and promises more?
Jesus said that we are not to worry, but to “seek His Kingdom first” and His Father would generously take care of our needs. And, He invited “all who are burdened and weary” to come and find sweet rest in Him.
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