Project Planned In Manatee Habitat Should Be Stopped - Save the ...

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Project Planned In Manatee Habitat Should Be Stoppedcontinued from page 1City, both seeking 500 new slips.Heavy lobbying efforts are alsounderway by the City and the developersto convince the Departmentsof Environmental Protection andCommunity Affairs that they shouldoverride the Aquatic PreserveManagement Plan and proceed withthe commercial marina, even thoughDCA has found the project inconsistentwith the Volusia CountyComprehensive Plan (Plan) as well.Because of the great potentialharm that would likely come tomanatees if this commercial marinawere to be built, Save the ManateeClub has intervened as a legalparticipant to officially supportthe DCA position that the commercialmarina is inconsistent with thePlan and would put more dangerousboat traffic on waters frequentedby manatees and jeopardize thePreserve’s natural features.Donate Now!Please donate now so we can stop this project from being built in an aquatic preserve in an areafrequently used by the manatees in our Blue Spring Adopt-A-Manatee program, and support our workon many other critical conservation issues. You can donate online from our secure server.Go to: www.savethemanatee.org/donation.htm, or call us toll-free at 1-800-432-JOIN (5646).Thank you so much for your help!4Summer Fun For The Girls At HomosassaHomosassa Springs Update, by Park Ranger Matt RobinsonSummer is officiallyhere, and the manateesat Homosassa SpringsWildlife State Park areenjoying long days in the sun.Betsy and her sister, Ariel, spendat least half of each day basking inthe shallows near the UnderwaterObservatory—between meals, ofcourse. The increase in temperature,as well as daylight hours, means anincrease in the temperature of thein-ground pool. The concrete wallsof the pool also hold heat andwarm the temperature in the poolto around 85 degrees on most days,which makes Rosie and Loreleiespecially happy.The increase in daylight hoursalso leads to faster algae growthon the manatees. As a result, duringthe summer the manatees here atthe park get their normal once-aweek“spa treatment” twice a week.Rosie and Ariel especially enjoythe exfoliating salt scrub that comesat the end of the process. That stepis designed to kill any remainingalgae, but the manatees seem tobe of the opinion that it is fortheir enjoyment, so why tell themany different!Electra stays in the warm shallowarea near the Underwater ObservatoryRosie (left) and Electra. Photo by Bill Garvin, Homosassa Springs WildlifeState Park.during the day to give her first choiceof the carrots at the programs. Eventhis time of year, when most of thewild manatees have moved out ofthe river and into the shallowsaround the Gulf, we have seen twodifferent seacows with calves at thebridge in the month of June. Eachtime they were met on the oppositeside of the bridge by Rosie andAmanda, who always seem to wantto talk with the wild little ones.In the next few months, all ofthe manatees at the park are due fortheir official weights and checkups,which they always pass with flyingcolors. It will be interesting to seewhere Electra, who has grown agood deal in the past year, andAriel, who seems to be catchingup rather quickly with her mother,Amanda, fall in the overall sizeand weight measurements.
Club Helps To Defeat Several Bad Bills continued from page 2Government Appropriations.SB 2082 and HB 957 were proposedjust to do a favor for onedeveloper and would have allowedhim to build docks that could nothave been permitted under Florida’sexisting manatee protection laws.Because of you, though, we helpedto defeat this bad bill, whicheventually died in the Senate.From proposed legislation tonew rules, from proposed marinasin manatee habitat to additionalmanatee protection measures, wemust be everywhere at once andwe can only accomplish this withyour support!In the end, maybe acting asindividuals we can’t make muchof a difference, but see what wecan accomplish when we acttogether. That old adage is true –there is strength in numbers!Please do two things immediately:1. Sign up (and get your friends to do so as well) for our E-mail Action Alert Team to receiveup-to-the-minute manatee news and find out how you can help make a difference.Go to: www.savethemanatee.org/action.htm.2. Help us continue to achieve success. You can donate online at: www.savethemanatee.org/donation.htm,or send your donation to Save the Manatee Club, 500 N. Maitland Avenue, Maitland, Florida 32751, orcall us at 1-800-432-JOIN (5646) with your credit card information. Thank you so much for your support!More Trouble For Flicker By Terry Nearing, EditorThere were no sightingsof Jemp, Ginger, Vector,or Elsie by the folks atthe FWCC, and thesummer left us with only one bitof news – bad news. On May 15th,a citizen in Venice found Flickerentangled in a crab line, trap, andbuoy. The man attempted to staywith her until help could arrive, butbad weather forced him off the water.Unfortunately, efforts to relocateFlicker on subsequent days failed.On May 30th, an enforcementofficer removed a line and buoyfrom Flicker in the Imperial River(southern Lee County). The crabtrap was missing. The buoy wastracked to Hillsborough County,indicating that it had worked itsway free of Flicker between May15th and May 30th. Flicker traveledover 115 miles after becomingentangled! Before hearing thisgood news, though, we hadplanned on assisting efforts tofind Flicker to remove the lineand gear, and actions like theseare only made possible becauseof your generous support.Poor Flicker was sighted latelast December with a missing rightYou can request a hi-res jpeg of this ad for your companynewsletters. E-mail: jnearing@savethemanatee.orgflipper, probably the result of anearlier entanglement. It is a poignantreminder of the dangers all manateesface each and every day. Find outmore about manatee entanglementand what you can do about it.Go to www.savethemanatee.org/manatee.materials.htm. Andplease remember to stashyour trash!Protect Manatees For TomorrowPlease consult your attorney for information on including Save the Manatee Club in your will.You’ll have the satisfaction of knowing that support of manatees will be sustained throughyour thoughtful bequest. Many thanks!5
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