Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park
We wanted to see manatee and we hadn't had any luck at Manatee Springs, and we didn't want to get dressed in a wet suit and snorkel out in the water to see one. A glass bottom boat would have been perfect, but there weren't any. The next best thing was the Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park. It's a little schizophrenic because of its history. It originally was a commercial venture with exotic animals. They dredged a canal and rode tour boats around sort of like Disney's Adventureland. They had monkeys on Monkey Island, but the monkeys would jump the boats and steal whatever they could get their hands on. Anyway, the park was bought by the state in 1989 and the plan was to distribute the exotics and reinstate local animals and plants. So out went the monkeys and in came foxes and birds and wolves and reptiles native to Florida. Oh, and alligators
 |
| Note the gator upper left. |
All except Lu the hippo.. Lu was born in the San Diego zoo in 1960, fell in love with a donkey, which is another story, and worked on stage and in the movies. When the donkey died he was heartbroken and wouldn't work again. He ended up at this park, before it was a state park. When the state took over and people found out they were going to ship Lu out there was a public letter writing campaign to Governor Lawton Chiles asking that Lu be allowed to stay. Governor Chiles, sensing a vote getting opportunity, made Lu an honorary citizen of Florida which allowed him to stay. They say Lu can live to about 60 years so they expect he'll be around for awhile longer. When Lu passes they will make his pool part of the alligator pond. More room for the gators to roam.
 |
| Lu |
They also established a manatee rehab area. The park is open to the Homosassa river and the manatee will come up to the warmer water when the weather gets cold. Manatee cannot survive in cold water. The manatee is a big animal and lives on sea vegetation. Its biggest threat is us and our propeller driven boats. Manatees are mammals and must come up to breath and are often hit by boat propellers when they do. They are very important to the ecology of the rivers. They keep the river vegetation under control, otherwise the river would become un-navigable and the fish would die. So it is important to both study and care for them, which seems to be the main purpose of this park. More about manatees.
 |
| Wild manatee |
We spent hours here and to our minds it was the best value for the money we've seen in a park.
 |
| I'm starting to look like a manatee |
No comments:
Post a Comment