Travels With Kerri: December 2010

Manatees

These manatees are West Indian Manatees, and they were brought over from India to be used as food.

They use the whiskers on their nose to sense other manatees and food. Although, they are so big, that often they just bump right into you as they swim by, like it's no big deal. The young ones have really bumpy skin, but as they grow, the skin stretches out and becomes smooth. The babies make high pitched squeaking sounds to call out to their mothers.

A few manatees live in Crystal River year round, but most migrate as far as Texas and even Rhode Island. Their favorite food is sea grass. These vegetarians can grow up to 2,000 pounds.

Since there are only somewhere between 2,000-4,000 left in the Florida area, they are a protected species. Their main threat is us. Careless boaters, climate change, pollution, and overhunting are all factors.

I love manatees!

This was my favorite manatee. He likes cuddling, being petted, and giving kisses.

I was surprised a the strength of their fins. He just grabbed right on to my legs, stomache, or arms.

Sometimes they just nibbled on my feet and legs. It tickles.

Mingling with manatees

Small fish found protection by staying near the manatees.

Needlenose fish

Tiffany and the manatees.

Homasassa Springs

We visited Homasassa Springs Wildlife State Park where they showcase native Florida wildlife.

The Homasassa River flows through the park, and the warm springs draw crouwds of wild manatees to the area. There were about 30 hanging out near the bridge.

Inside an underwater observatory called the Fish Bowl, we observed thousands of snook hanging out closest to the spring where it is the warmest.

In the reptile exhibit, baby alligators chased turtles around the habitat.

Manatee Residents

There were 8 captive manatees who were either sick or injured and could not live in the wild, so the Park takes care of them.

They feed them romaine lettuce several times a day.

They always seem to look for the biggest chunks. Sometimes the adults even steal from the babies.

This big one claimed a corner and didn't move the entire time.

Lu

Lu, short for Lucifer, was the star attraction even though she is not a true native.

She was born in a zoo in San Diego 51 years ago, and after a brief stint as a television and movie performer, her stardom abruptly ended, and nobody knew what to do with a 6,000 pound African Hippopotamus.

Watch out! She can spray up to 15 feet.

The people at the Homasassa Wildlife Park took Lu, and she gets to eat all the fruit she wants.

Native Wildlife

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Fox.

Airboat Tour

We just had to ride on an airboat!

Monkeys in Florida? Someone built Monkey Island for 4 monkeys. They are fed and cared for by some eccentric person who lives along the river.

Yikes! We really are in the south.

Airboat Tour

There used to be lots of sugar plantations around here, and this is a canal built by slaves long ago for a farmer who wanted to water his crops. We floated along peacefully, looking for alligators.

Moss hung from many of the trees, creating a spooky swampy atmosphere.

There were lots of small islands with crude structures. People actually own these islands, and use them mainly as a place to party.

Rainbow River

I went scuba diving in Rainbow River. This was my first river dive and fresh water dive.

The river bed had patches of long grass and open spaces with sand, tiny rocks, and even fossils.

Rainbow Springs, the 4th largest spring in Florida, pumps 500 million gallons of fresh water per day, and that made for great visibility. I could easily see 80 feet. Besides the main spring, hot water also emits from caves, crevices, and sand boils like in this picture.