3rin's View…

Winter and Spring are the busy seasons down here in my part of Florida. As such, many of the local parks and nonprofit organizations offer interesting outreach events.

In the past couple months I’ve attended several informative talks where I learned about horseshoe crabs, Florida panthers, rescuing seabirds, winter stargazing, the condition of the state’s many springs, and the status of Tampa Bay’s aquatic preserves.

Recently someone asked me why I care so much about the environment. The question dumbfounded me, how could I not care about it? I simply replied, “Because I live in it. We all do.”

Headed out to dip my toes in the sand after work today. I was surprised to find a Portuguese man o’ war (Physalia physalis), one of my first here in Florida. There was also a large whelk egg casing. Those were the highlights.

Sadly, the shore was littered with dead fish. Most of them were small, in the 4″ range, which doesn’t bode well for future generations of these fish. Red tide chased me away before sunset, not a great beach day.

Westley is very particular about things. A personality trait we share (along with being headstrong, but I digress). An example, he prefers his litter mounded in one corner of his box. I smooth it into a uniform layer after I clean his box which he immediately “fixes” as soon as I’m done.

Another example, shortly after I adopted him, he decided that his shark and lanyard were bedroom toys. Not just bedroom toys but specifically, bed toys. If I toss either of them on the floor (or heaven forbid, into another room), he promptly retrieves it and brings it back onto the bed.

He’s certainly a character!

Thank goodness for longer days, there’s now plenty of time to hit the beach after work. 🏝️

The beauty of tonight’s sunset belies the sad truth that red tide is flaring up again in the gulf. The fumes tickling my throat were my first indication but as I walked along I also saw a few dead fish.

Out of curiosity, I checked the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s recent water testing data. It noted medium levels of Karenia brevis in the water along my favorite beach. I certainly hope this isn’t the beginning of a massive flare up…

It was cloudy and gray this afternoon but the tourist-filled boats were still optimistically heading out to catch sunset. Note the crewman climbing the mast…

After hearing about this amazing location for the past couple years, I finally had a chance to check out John Chestnut Sr. Park up in Palm Harbor. I spent four enjoyable hours wandering the various trails and boardwalks.

Keep in mind, for every cooperative subject I managed to capture, there were at least two others that snuck away. It was a stellar way to spend the day.

So, imagine my surprise when I overheard a young woman talking on her phone, “Nah, there isn’t anything interesting to see here.” It certainly gave me a chuckle…

I caught this action yesterday afternoon during my breezy beach walk. I rarely manipulate my photos but I really liked that ray from the sun and wanted to make it pop. So, I filtered out the daylight. I rather like it.

I first noticed this sign right after I moved here three years ago. Yesterday, I finally took the time to snap a picture of it.

It’s a bit incongruous here along the Florida Gulf Coast, but it I enjoy seeing it since it reminds me of my old stomping grounds in the Sonoran Desert.