#starving manatees

[jthurlow]

Visual Seagrass Comparison -August 2022 to January 2023 SLR/IRL

Visual Seagrass Comparison -August 2022 to January 2023 SLR/IRL

After a stretch of hurricane and rains since October 2022, the St Lucie River/Indian River Lagoon is clearing up. The river has endured the “usual suspects” C-44 basin, C-23 canal, C-24 canal, and stromwater runoff; however, luckily no damaging discharges from Lake Okeechobee. With my husband Ed’s most recent flight, I was pleased to see the blue, clear waters returning to the Sailfish Flats and…

[ellecdc]

oh my gosh i didnt even know you had more potter!reader fics

i cant find them and im spiralling

sirius x potter reader who thinks she's too much

remus x potter reader who cannot be contained

remus x potter reader who is a metamorphmagus

regulus x potter reader who is usually chatty but fumbles with reg

Barty x potter reader: they find out about jegulus they tattle on jegulus reader just really likes manatees barty finds out he's going to the potters for the hols reader enacts revenge on Barty's behalf

wolfstar x potter reader: sibling squabbles reader feels touch starved they tell James one bed trope

the sibling stealer (moonwater x potter reader)

[rjzimmerman]

When I was an active docent and volunteer in the desert, and hiked all over the place, whenever I spotted the remains of a mylar balloon, I went for it, shoved it in my backpack and brought it back to properly dispose of it. Those things are vicious killers of wildlife.

Excerpt from this story from the New York Times:

Balloons released in the sky don’t go to heaven. They often end up in oceans and waterways, where they’re 32 times more likely to kill seabirds than other types of plastic debris. Despite this, humans like to release them en masse, be it to celebrate a loved one’s life or a wedding, or to reveal the gender of a baby.

The practice is on the verge of becoming illegal in Florida, where the legislature has joined a growing number of states to ban the intentional release of balloons outdoors. The Florida ban is expected to be signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis and would take effect July 1.

Florida is at the forefront of a dizzying and contentious array of statewide bans, outlawing lab grown meat, certain books from school libraries and classrooms, and most abortions after six weeks. But the balloon ban is rare for garnering widespread bipartisan support. It was championed by environmentalists and sponsored by two Republican lawmakers from the Tampa Bay area, Linda Chaney, a state representative and Nick DiCeglie, a state senator.

“Balloons contribute to the increase in microplastic pollution which is harmful to every living thing including humans, polluting our air and drinking water,” Ms. Chaney wrote in an email.

“My hope is that this bill changes the culture, making people more aware of litter in general, including balloons,” she said.

Ms. Chaney said she first heard about the perils of balloon debris in 2020. Aquatic animals often mistake balloons for jellyfish and feel full after eating them, essentially starving from the inside out. Ribbons affixed to balloons entangle turtles and manatees. Balloons also pose a threat to land animals. In her research, Ms. Chaney learned about a pregnant cow that died after ingesting a balloon while grazing. The unborn calf died too.

The bill closes a loophole in an existing Florida law that allowed for the outdoor release of up to nine balloons per person in any 24-hour period, a provision that critics say didn’t achieve the goal of reducing marine trash.

The new legislation makes it clear that balloons can pose an environmental hazard, supporters say. It equates intentionally releasing a balloon filled with a gas lighter than air with littering, a noncriminal offense that carries a fine of $150. The ban also applies to outdoor releases of any balloons described by manufacturers as biodegradable.

The ban does not restrict the sale of balloons by party suppliers or manufacturers; they could still be used indoors or as decorations outdoors if properly secured.

[lilapplesheadcannons]

Juniors next door, battlestation!

The four defeated warriors gasped for breaths. Lan JingYi burped like a bloated manatee, but the rest were too exhausted to react any further than to scrunch their faces in disgust. Jin Ling was hunched under the makeshift wobbly desk, nursing a bruised shin. He wasn't sure whether it was one of the fearsome Yiling Laozu's missiles or a wayward kick from his fellow juniors. Sizhui was sprawled on the rug, eyes vacant, seemingly oblivious to the rabbit desperately trying to chew on the hem of his t-shirt. Ouyang Zizhen was groaning from the couch, clutching on to his belly. Finally, SiZhui broke the silence, "We lost! After all that new battlegears and simulation practice, we still lost."

JingYi couldn't help feeling sorry for their leader. "We did our best. But we are talking about the Yiling Laozu here."

"He made me eat the liver. And onions. I can still taste it in my mouth." Zizhen wailed.

"Rat bustard!" Jin Ling emphasised.

SiZhui suddenly sat up. The rabbit was sent flying and landed on a cushion where it promptly started to chew on the tussels.

"We are not going to give up. We are the only hope of children everywhere to stand up against adult tyranny. Eat veggies for dinner? What next? Do we have to brush our teeth? Do summer homework? Should we live our lives under the shadows of villainous adults? No! Jin Ling, traps! Make sure they can't climb up the ladder so easily next time. Lan JingYi! Rabbit catapults! Ouyang Zizhen! Stock up on soda and candy. We are going all out!"

The Juniors roared in agreements and started scrambling.

"How were they?" Lan Wangji peered over his reading glasses. His husband was looking worse for wear and was conspicuously missing a slipper.

"Stupid! Stuuuuuuupid! Put a stu in the front and end it with a pid! That's how they were. I swear since they got that tree house, they have become insufferable! We should just let them stay up there and forget about it."

Lan Wangji gently shook his head. "Can't let kids starve over the summer holidays. Bad parenting."

"Says who?" Wei Wuxian raised an eyebrow.

"Well, your sister and my brother and Mr Ouyang, for starter."

"Then they can climb up the bloody ladder while carrying 4 plates!"

Lan Wangji nodded sympathetically. "How about this? We will ask Jiang Wanyin to get them to brush their teeth tonight."

@benevolenterrancy

[plethoraworldatlas]

Responding to a formal petition submitted by the Center for Biological Diversity, Harvard Animal Law & Policy Clinic, Miami Waterkeeper, Save the Manatee Club and Frank S. González García, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced today that reclassifying the West Indian manatee from threatened to endangered may be warranted.

Today’s decision, known as a 90-day finding, is the first procedural step toward providing much greater protections for the imperiled species. The Fish and Wildlife Service must now conduct a thorough review of the best available science before determining whether to increase protections under the Endangered Species Act. A final protection decision is due by Nov. 21, 2023.

“This is the right call for manatees and everyone who cares about these charming creatures,” said Ragan Whitlock, a Florida-based attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity. “I applaud the Fish and Wildlife Service for taking the next step toward increased safeguards. Manatees need every ounce of protection they can get.”

...

Since the Service prematurely reduced manatee protections in 2017, the species has declined dramatically. Pollution-fueled algae blooms sparked an ongoing mortality event that has contributed to unprecedented Florida manatee mortality approaching 2,000 deaths in 2021 and 2022 combined. This two-year record represents more than 20% of all manatees in Florida. Manatee experts predict more malnourished and starving manatees with fewer births for years to come.

[bumblebeeappletree]

Crystal River has long been a safe haven for the Florida manatee, but when an invasive algae wiped out the eelgrass that manatees need for food, the community rallied to restore the river and save the animals that call it home.

After an unexpected storm forever changed Crystal River more than three decades ago, Lisa Moore founded Save Crystal River to rally the community to garner funding for a massive restoration project. Sea and Shoreline’s Jessica Mailliez demonstrates the dirty work they do to remove invasive algae and restore native eelgrass. This transformation has allowed Florida manatees to return to Crystal River, but for those living along the west coast of the state, the situation is much more dire.

There, manatees are declining fast — nearly two thousand have died from starvation since 2020 along the Indian River Lagoon. Zoo Tampa has been rescuing as many starving manatees as they can hold, saving them from death and prepping them for re-release into the wild. Fortunately for the manatees ready to return to the wild, they have a safe destination: Crystal River. The strides made in that small community hold promise for a path forward for manatees across the state.

[aloeverawrites]

Help for free there ^

[deerydear]

I painted this after I woke up from a dream.

In this dream... We were out in the middle of a pine forest. There was a log cabin where the other men lived. Doctor Lecter and I were visiting.

We talked, and I sat and endured the conversations they all had. I was trapped in my own little iceberg of self-torment.

As if... all Life would send out its feelers towards me, and then stop, shrink up, and go the other direction...

So they all had tea. It was rather dark in the cabin. There weren't a lot of windows, or else most of them were covered up. No candles. Just a thin stream of gentle blue daylight filtering in from the kitchen, somewhere...

This also reminds me of a dream where I poisoned a bunch of people.

They were all sitting around a round table, eating the food I had cooked.

The people started projectile-vomiting copious amounts of black sludge. It reminded me of Sweeney Todd, for whatever reason.

I think of this, because they had a window behind the kitchen table.... with a criss-cross pattern dividing it up into many little windows. The blinds were down, and the sheer shades were closed. It had much the same effect of light as this room with the men.

So, we had been there for a while... and some of the guests were leaving. Soon, I was alone with Hannibal and one other man.

I was slouched over, in a sour mood... I didn't want to be there. I didn't know where I wanted to be, so I let the moment pull me like a current.

One thing led to another, and I took out a flintlock pistol and I shot the other man. I began to gasp for air, panic. Then, Lecter tried to shush me. He wanted me to relax.

Did I tell you that my name was Graham?

Well, at some point.... my memory turns to sludge.

I ran. I unlatched the door, I ran out into the broad daylight. It was so bright outside. I almost had forgotten. The trees were swaying in the wind...

I came to the rocky lakeshore.

A giant animal stuck its head out of the water. It was a Manatee, chewing sea-grass in the familiar manner of a cow. It had a long, long neck... and it looked at me with familiar affection.

This was a long time ago, but in the state I had been in... I was like a Starving Man in the Land of Plenty. Someone would reach out their hands to me, and I would have run away for dear Life. ......Dear Death?

Did I love Death more than Life?

Well, I was in this mind-state. My mind was grasping for some point of familiarity.... something to right itself upon.

Something to feel like I knew something? To be superior in knowledge...

So, in this disconnected state... I grasped onto the two little pinpricks of light that I saw.

It was like there was a burlap bag over my head, and the holes where the lights came in were stars.

I wanted to create a menagerie of constellations.... of MEANING.

but the truth was that I could take the bag off, and see the full glory of the light, and the picture of the world.

So, in my dream, I tried to put two and two together.

I yelled at this gentle giant. I remember I said, "Plesiosaurs ate fish, not plants!"

My reasoning was that I thought this was supposed to be "the Loch Ness monster" and a common theory was that Nessie was a Plesiosaur. You see all the assumptions I had just made about someone in a dream?

Well, that gentle beast recedes.

It stuck its head back in the water..... and OUT EMERGED A WAXY RED FACE, WITH TWO BIG BLACK HORNS!

OH YES, YOU ASKED FOR A PLESIOSAUR, HAVE YOU SURE GOT ONE!

AND IT CHASED ME AROUND THE SHORELINE WITH ITS LONG, TELESCOPIC NECK!

In the commotion, I woke up.

.......

"I actually saw the Loch Ness monster when I was 9" -- Thom Yorke

SOMEONE ELSE SAW IT!

I really felt like it could have gone differently. I felt very agentive in this dream.

I felt that it was trying to show me something about my own mind.

It wasn't that I was trying to find my way out of the burlap bag... I already knew what life was like outside of it.

I wanted to put my pants on my head, and run around like a retard!

I wanted to play pretend. I wanted to find the meaning in that starry sky. I wanted it to be more than just the inside of a burlap bag!

Maybe once before, I had been shoved inside of a bag... but it was for a brief time, but the experience haunted me.

I kept going back, like an autoerotic-asphyxiator... seeking that high I once felt.

Seeking the dark, dark depths, and the light within the dark... but the light of the dark is no different than the light outside.

It all loops around, you see?

[beck-a-leck]

4, 20, 28!

Answering these Oddly Specific Questions!

4. Mythical Creatures you think/believe are real?

Yeah I'm really boring in this department. I generally don't believe in mythical creatures beyond the "this is what people used to explain things and how they described weird animals and/or to make for a fun story" scope. Like sea serpents are oar fish, mermaids are manatees, dinosaur fossils were turned into dragons and giants. I mean there's so many fukin weird and fascinating animals already on this planet! Half of them don't even sound real to begin with when you start describing them.

So yeah. We might not have dragons or faries. But have you seen some of the things that live in the deep ocean? Might as well be dragons and faries!

20. Favorite Disney Princess Movie?

My first thought was a tie between Mulan and Hercules. But if we wanna get pedantic, I don't think either Meg or Mulan are Technically princesses. So going by either born into royalty or married royalty metric... i think I'll say Little Mermaid. Gosh i love that movie and the soundtrack. But if you ask me any other day i know my answer will change. I have a very soft spot for all the 90s-00s disney movies.

Actually, no wait. I thought about it more.

Since Disney owns Star Wars that officially makes Princess Leia a Disney Princess by the born into royalty metric. I'm saying Star Wars is my fav! (Don't ask me to pick 1 of the movies as a Fav fav. I can't 😂)

28. Last meal on Earth?

Oh man, assuming that like materials and time and physical ability weren't a factor. I'd probably do like a buffet of all my favorite things so i could get a bite of everything i love before I go. So like something family-nostalgia like kielbasa and city chicken and pierogis made like my grandma does. Pork and apple pie the way my mom makes it. Just a whole selection of pasta and sauces. Probably a pizza or two in there. A steak cooked perfectly with a loaded baked potato. Soups! So many soups.

And for dessert... hmmm there's gotta be some ice creams, chocolate chip cookies the way I make them, an apple pie, and chocolate cheesecake.

(Okay I'm starving and waiting for my dinner to cook and akswering this did not make me any less hungry lmao)

[aquato-family-circus]

This isn’t a question, but I just love this blog!!! So much!!!!! I’ve been on a binge leafing through your art and ideas with so much joy. Seeing all the other stuff you reblog makes my day better and turns me onto so many other cool artists. And when I see you reblogging my stuff from @nd-of-a-manatee I glow inside.

Maybe I’m community-starved and PN-obsessed, but this blog just makes me so happy, and I wanted you to know that.

Keep being you! :3

You're very sweet, thank you!! It always puts a smile on my face seeing how much people enjoy my silly side blog where I post and reblog pics and text about my blorbos

[imnotsureaboutwhatimdoing]

they are so still in trouble that we are feeding wild manatees lettuce just so they don't starve

[itsbydesign]

“55 tons of lettuce”

[lutoogyan]

Conservation Groups to Sue Over Florida's Starving Manatees

Multiple conservation groups joined forces and announced their intent to sue a federal agency over what they say is a failure to protect West Indian manatees, large marine mammals that live near Florida and across the Caribbean. The manatees’ population has declined in recent years as they run out of food and lose habitat. Rare Polar Bear Attack in Canada | Extreme Earth The Harvard Animal Law…

[biglisbonnews]

Nursing Florida’s Ailing Manatees Back to Health—And the Wild This piece was originally published in Inside Climate News and appears here as part of our Climate Desk collaboration. Bianca was a mere calf when she was rescued in 2021 from Florida’s ailing Indian River Lagoon. After a long recovery at SeaWorld she finally swam back into the wild, one of a huge number of rehabilitated manatees to be released this month in the state. “Opening the stretcher and seeing her slowly swim out of it and exploring the natural environment for the very first time here at Blue Spring—it’s just amazing,” said Cora Berchem, manatee research associate at the Save the Manatee Club, who helped carry Bianca into the warm water near sunrise at Blue Spring State Park, north of Orlando. “We’re hoping that she doesn’t have too much of a learning curve, that she’ll be able to find friends here at Blue Spring and acclimate pretty quickly.” Bianca was among a record 12 manatees to be released in one day at Blue Spring. Even more manatees were released this week in Crystal River and Apollo Beach, both near Tampa. The nearly two dozen releases so far this year represent a rare bright spot as an unprecedented die-off of Florida’s manatees continues. Nearly 2,000 manatee deaths were recorded statewide in 2021 and 2022—a two-year record. Conservation groups say the mortalities represent more than 20 percent of the state’s population. The calamity prompted wildlife agencies to go as far as to provide supplemental lettuce for starving manatees in the Indian River Lagoon, a crucial manatee habitat on Florida’s east coast where water quality problems have led to a widespread loss of seagrass, the sea cows’ favorite food. Many of the sick and injured manatees rescued during this time now are ready to be released, and the wildlife agencies acknowledge they are eager for the bed space, so to speak, as the habitat problems that have contributed to the die-off will not be resolved anytime soon. The die-off has strained the aquariums, zoos and other rehabilitation facilities that have taken in the ailing manatees. SeaWorld plans to double its rehabilitation space to accommodate more manatees. But the releases also represent an opportunity to celebrate the immense work that goes into saving a single manatee like Bianca, an orphan whose mother was injured and did not survive. Some rescued manatees are near death when they arrive at facilities like SeaWorld, and the recovery from starvation is much longer than that for other problems like red tide. For starvation the recovery can last six to eight months and much longer for orphaned calves like Bianca, who never learned basics from their mothers like finding food or warm water during the cold months. “It’s been a very tough couple of years for the field biologists being out there. We’ve seen a lot of things that are really sad, depressing. It’s heart-wrenching,” said Monica Ross, senior research scientist at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. “The fact that these calves are getting a second chance, they’re able to get back out there and they look in great health, it really gives the huge kudos to the entire program, specifically the rescue group and the facilities for getting these animals into such a condition that they can have a second chance.” The releases also come as things may be looking up for Florida’s manatees. The number of deaths this winter is down, an encouraging sign for the cold-sensitive animals, and the wildlife agencies say manatees in the wild appear to be in better health and less emaciated. That could be because the agencies’ lettuce program is helping, but it also could be because the die-off has reached a point where there are fewer manatees left to die. Nonetheless there also are spots in the Indian River Lagoon where the seagrass appears to be rebounding. Florida’s manatees still face many threats. One concern is their dependence during the cold months on the warm waters around power plants, like the one on the Indian River Lagoon in Cape Canaveral where the wildlife agencies have been providing supplemental lettuce, said Pat Rose, executive director of the Save the Manatee Club, who has advocated for the iconic sea cows for some 50 years. Bianca appeared ready to be free. She weighed a robust 900 pounds, with a nice round belly and round shoulders. Over time power companies will move away from fossil fuels because of climate change, and manatees will need to be weaned off these artificially warm waters and transitioned to naturally occurring ones like Blue Spring, where the temperature year-round is 72 degrees. Rose also fears the losses related to the ongoing die-off may be generational. “We’re seeing very, very few calves, and so not only did we have all the death that we experienced, reproduction and so forth has been very limited,” he said. The manatee was downlisted in 2017 from endangered to threatened, a decision that has generated widespread outcry. In November the Save the Manatee Club, Center for Biological Diversity, Harvard Animal Law & Policy Clinic, Miami Waterkeeper and Frank S. González García, a concerned citizen, petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to restore the manatee’s endangered status; the decision is still pending. Meanwhile, Bianca and the other released manatees will be monitored for the next year to ensure they thrive in the wild. Sometimes orphaned calves struggle and are rescued again and returned to the wild after another short rehabilitation. But at Blue Spring, Bianca appeared ready to be free. She weighed a robust 900 pounds, with a nice round belly and round shoulders. “Sometimes I wonder myself what goes on in their heads because they’re used to being in a pool, in rehabilitation, for a couple of years,” said Berchem of the Save the Manatee Club. “Hopefully they get used to being wild animals sooner than later.” https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/florida-manatee-rehabilitation

[kirikosaiki]

I would also add that manatees are also larger than their predators and smaller predators face a huge risk going after them. Most large prey requires numbers to safely and effectively take down with minimal risk to the predator. Like packs of lions going after elephants, using numbers to balance the size and strength of prey. Because even if manatees don’t attack back with claws, or tusks etc their large size and natural strength/weight is a huge risk. So by having numbers to distract they could reduce the risk.

But Alligators aren’t pack hunters and likely don’t often want to take the risk on solo. As just being under their tail when they swim away could result in injury or death. And I think injured and scared animal with that much mass behind them could easily cause a lot of harm

Getting a small chunk of flesh occasionally is not USUALLY worth being that close to something that’s entire body is a weapon. And if they are that close already they are not going to make the entire animal flail frantically and panic. Unless they are starved their main focus is probably on avoiding getting hit or angering said large animal.

So it’s definitely possible, but probably not common as it probably safer to just co-exist!

how do manatees even survive as a species if they're way too peaceful. somehow nothing wants to eat them. not gators or sharks or whales

it's quite simple, they're their ecosystem's version of a megafauna grazing mammal! they're simply too large for most predators to bother. they are, in fact, fucking huge.

see, manatees don't actually live out in the open ocean. they live in rivers, estuaries, and shallow seagrass bays like this:

so the thing is, large macropredator sharks and superpredators like killer whales don't go here! they stay out in open deep water, so they never really cross paths with manatees in the first place.

there ARE sharks here, but they're small! adult manatees are completely out of their prey size range, and they're more interested in fish anyway.

alligators do live here also, but even a very large alligator can't really dream of preying on an adult manatee! again, they're simply too big.

so, yeah. this is just another case of "this mammal is able to get away with being a gentle giant by simply growing too large for any predator in its area to touch" and I think that's beautiful.

[theguardianvoice]

Petition · Help Save Starving Manatees · Change.org

Manatees in Florida are dying off at record rates. More than 20% of the manatees—close to 2,000—have perished in the past two years. More than 740 manatees died just last year, following a catastrophic 2021 for these gentle giants, when more than 1,100 perished.  These animals are starving to death due to loss of seagrass, and swimming through some of the worst pollution they’ve ever…