Manatee Springs State Park for the Manatees!

 We were anxious to get back to Manatee Springs State Park while the Manatees were in the Springs. In the winter months hundreds of these gentle giants come into the Springs where it is 72 degrees year round to escape the colder water of the Suwannee River. The park ranger said there were around 50 here and I got to see about a dozen.

This is the best photo! HaHa! They are a challenge to photograph.

But on the first day there, I walked down to the water's edge and there was a baby (a big baby) that I could have reached out and touched, but of course I didn't! I just stood there and watched it in awe. They are about 60 lbs at birth and this one was about 4 ft long.

This is a pool of water where they congregate.

An adult coming up for air!

I'll need more than one post to share photos of this trip so there will be more to come.

And as if seeing West Indian Manatees isn't exciting enough....

I watched a Limpkin on the nest!

Crazy flying photo!

I heard 2 of them crying out to each other and they are LOUD. You feel like you've landed in Jurassic park when you hear them call! 

It flew up onto a branch and I was snapping pics as fast as I could.

And then it settled onto it's nest with just it's head peeking out.

Again, I was able to point it out to a few people on the boardwalk so that was rewarding too.

It was a real highlight of the trip.

I saw lots of Comorants. 

Cormorants on a log

And several Warblers.

I think this is a Yellow-rumped Warbler.

It's common but still very nice to spot!

So that's one walk down the 800 ft boardwalk! 

I have a lot of photos to share but I plan to step away from the computer for a couple of weeks for a new adventure. We have internet when we camp but I don't spend much time on the computer! Have a beautiful Spring. 

Be back soon! 🌴

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and Nature Friday HERE!

Florida Manatee Facts

 I don't claim to be an expert on 'all things Florida'. I just wander around this beautiful state (mostly in North Central Florida), taking photos and then pouring over identification books and searching online to educate myself on what I've seen.

But it is very nice when you see something and find out, you did indeed see what you thought you saw! 

I'll give you a nice link HERE to read facts and information on the Manatees.

Most of the websites I found that give more details are newspaper articles that let you view it one time and then asked for you to subscribe. So I won't give those links.

So what did we think we were seeing? 

It looked like a Manatee had beached itself. 

It swam to the shallow waters and was on the sand, with a lot of the body exposed.

What was it doing? From what I read and can understand....it was mating season.

The female can be pursued by a mating herd and she may try to beach herself to get away from them all. 

They splish and splash and push to release her from the sand and then they do what manatees do and then they all swim away as fast as the eye can follow! So that's what we saw.

We thought at first the one manatee that was beached was in trouble. And the others were trying to help. OK! That's one way to put it. I think it all ended up just fine but it was an interesting sight to witness. I read in some of the newspapers that people will call to report a manatee in distress when this happens. We watched until everyone was back in the water though so we weren't worried. 

This all took place on the Withlacoochee Bay Trail looking out into the Gulf of Mexico.

When you could look away....

an Anhinga and 2 Ibis were flying overhead!

Amazing!

White Ibis

Do you have a good weekend planned?

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and I’d Rather B Birdin’.  

What do these have in common?

 Coral Honeysuckle, Shrub Verbena and Wild Poinsettia

Zebra Longwing Butterfly on Verbena

So what do they have in common? 

They are all on the same page of my The Nature of Florida ID book AND we saw all three of them on our hike on the Withlacoochee Bay Trail this week. 

I had the book out to make sure I had the proper ID for the Wild Poinsettia. It still amazes me that after all our hikes here in Florida that we can see something we've never seen before.

Wild Poinsettia

It's not a rare wildflower but it has eluded us all these years. 

Shrub Verbena

We had a great hike and for awhile we thought we were all alone in the world. We only saw a few people on this beautiful trail and we stayed there for lunch and more hiking in the afternoon.

Coral Honeysuckle

I had mentioned that I would love to see a Manatee and we did!

And while we were eating lunch a Dolphin swam by. It just doesn't get any better than that. (I handed my sandwich to hubby, grabbed my camera and ran to the bank of the canal to watch him glide through the water but I didn't get a good pic of the Dolphin! )

Here are some of our other sightings.

Great Blue Heron

Willet

Little Blue Heron (juvenile)

Little Blue Heron (breeding colors)

Bald Eagle

Gulf of Mexico

We are having such beautiful weather that I am out on the trails more than at my computer. But I'll catch up soon. After all....it will get HOT before we know it here in Florida!

I’m joining Saturday’s critters HERE

and I’d Rather B Birdin’.