Top 10 Florida Nature Links 7/23/2023
A Few Things that caught my eye this week. Click on the picture to see the whole story.
Asperitas Clouds over Ft. Walton Beach
Asperitas clouds are a new type of cloud, recognized in 2017. They actually don’t have a lot of severe weather associated with them, but they look really angry and foreboding. This link is a couple of years old but was new to me.
Nice video at the link.
Via @fasc1nate on Twitter
Florida Python Challenge
The Florida Python Challenge kicks off on August 3rd. Last year’s challenge 1,000 participants that caught 231 pythons. Is that a lot? Just not seeing how such a huge effort results in so few caught. Are there as many as thought? Or not a lot of experienced hunters.
Just interesting that the number was so small, but the state was excited about it. Especially when the winner caught 28 pythons or 12 % of the total.
More thought required.
Coral Reef Awareness Week July 17-23
Yeah, ok, we missed it. But it’s still something to be aware of.
Coral reefs suffer from one large problem with several underlying problems. The large problem is that they take so long to regenerate. People and nature throw lots of challenges at them but they don’t have time to regenerate before the next challenge adds to the stress.
Hurricane season is upon us.
Though it has been pretty quiet thus far. Because Florida.
Via @SJRWMD on twitter
Loons in Florida
I’ve always liked the loons. If you ever hear their call on a northern lake you’ll remember it always. We do have a few loons in Florida, especially in winter. I’ve never heard a loon’s call in Florida. I have heard them when on lakes in Canada and New York.
Here’s a video that where you can hear the loon.
North of Lake Okeechobee Storage Reservoir (LOCAR) Upcoming Meetings
This project is a big deal, but has fallen out of public conversation. It’s about creating water storage to keep Lake O from holding too much water. When it’s forced to release water in summer it sometimes results in algae flowing down the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee rivers.
The notice is about upcoming dates and ideas for the project. They will be asking for comment in the meeting. The virtual date is Thursday, August 3, 2023 at 2:00 p.m.
Docking on riverbanks
This seems to be a point of emphasis from the Southwest Florida Water Management district recently. Rules to eliminate docking the Weeki Wachee are coming and they’re also educating about docking on the Chaz.
I’m torn about how I feel about this. On one hand keeping people off banks is probably good. However with so many people boating on the springs it’s going to be a bear to enforce.
They’re also taking down the rope swings. I hope the state knows they’re taking on a big job to enforce these rules.
July is National Park and Recreation Month.
Get out and visit a local park or 2. See the greatness of Florida’s State Parks. Just go. Drive through the Everglades. Hike a wilderness area. Just go.
Click the picture to see information about a park near and dear to my heart. I grew up near where this park now is.
Bear at Destin Beach
Black bears are actually very good swimmers but it’s pretty rare to see them in salt water. This little guy surprised swimmers. He’s relatively small, but not too small to make it on his own. Since most bears are born in the winter I’d guess he’s about 18 months old.
UF group catches and tags a 13 ft sawfish.
This is the furthest a sawfish has been caught in a very long time. The sawfish are critically endangered. I hope this helps with the preservation of this truly great species.
