I recently had the pleasure of watching a rambunctious young squirrel race around a picnic ramada. After calling the little one failed, mom dashed over and grabbed the cheeky bugger.
I was impressed by the mother’s strength as she scaled the rock pillar with a mouthful of baby. I didn’t see any of her other kids but perhaps that’s because they were more obedient and stayed in the nest like she told them to.
Typically, I would not even attempt to visit this lovely beach area on a weekend during Spring Break. Traffic is a nightmare, parking nearly impossible to find, and if you do find a spot it is prohibitively expensive.
Luckily, there’s the SunRunner, a new transit line that zips people from downtown St. Pete out to St. Pete Beach. I live just a few blocks from one of the stops and I enjoy taking advantage of the service (especially since it’s free until September).
Thanks to a recent shift in the wind which pushed red tide offshore, it ended up being a lovely little beach day. Well, except for having to share it with all the tourists (though they do leave behind some interesting things). But as it turns out, if you walk far enough, you can get away from most of them.
I took advantage of an early evening downtown and wandered out on the St. Pete Pier. The completely redesigned structure opened in July 2020 with large public play spaces, multiple restaurants, a gift shop, an arts and crafts market space, and even an education center.
One of the visual highlights, is Bending Arc, an undulating net sculpture by local artist Janet Echelman. It is a bit unremarkable during the day, just a massive gray mesh that resembles a cast net. At night though, it is mesmerizing as colorful lights dance over the 180 miles of twine.
I do enjoy living here!
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.”
When I saw a woman carrying this purse around downtown yesterday, I knew I had to capture it. I followed her for about a block, covertly snapping photos of her purse and random buildings. You know, in case she turned around (because I’m stealthy like that).
Is it just me or is the chicken staring me down?
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…
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