EASTERN DIAMONDBACK RATTLESNAKE

I put the video at the top this time, because I knew you would go there first ...

When my daughter Katie spotted this snake far ahead of us, I thought it was going to be a big branch. We had just passed a truck full of people coming from this direction only moments before.

I couldn't believe they had missed this snake.

This Diamondback must be living a charmed life to have avoided being run over by one vehicle and then to have us be the next vehicle upon it.

'Cause WE are going to make sure it makes it safely off the road.
It's what we do.

Out here, in the middle of a 6,000 acre Wildlife Management Area, this snake was exactly where it was supposed to be.

It's why I wear my $100.00 Cabelas snake boots when I am truly bushwhacking in this area.

When you are a guest in someone else's home, you should dress appropriately for the occasion.

We blocked the road and I photographed it as it slid into the brush ... where it immediately disappeared, as you no doubt saw in the video.

Did you notice how she "locked and loaded" even as she picked out an escape route and took it.

That message was crystal clear to me...

"I will defend myself if you force the issue, but my intent is to go on about my business."

Words to live by.

A PARADEY AQUACULTUREY POST

 It was homecoming week at our little island school. When you are too small for a football team, basketball season becomes the season of the traditional highschool homecoming events.

Of course there was a parade.

 Recycling is HUGE in Cedar Key. I didn't get a picture, but just in front of this recycling "float" was a pod of people dressed in plastic bags.
Recycling and energy conservation is ingrained, even in the kids. More than once I have had them get on to me because I left the lights on in the aquaculture lab.

Sweet!

 Of course, we do have some problems out here ... giant seagulls for instance.

 The water tower osprey probably had the best seat in the house for parade watching. The parade was short, fun, and full of flying candy as all parades should be.

Last night was the big game, homecoming king and queen coronation, and dance.
Good stuff.

Even though, it still resembles a construction site in some ways, we have been making good progress in the aquaculture lab.

We have the giant freshwater prawn (the black one) tank up and running, so I will be ordering Macrobrachium rosenbergii postlarvae this week.
The grey barrel holds dechlorinated tapwater for tank top-offs.

The rectangular mark on the floor with the vertical wood panel is where an old wooden aquarium stand had been for years before I got here. It was "tired" to say the least and was falling apart.
It needed to go, but an electrical outlet was attached to it with stripped, rusted screws.
So I took it apart piece by piece, leaving the upright panel you see until I could get back and make it right.

Last Sunday, I loaded up my trailer with a bunch of tools and lumber, and built a tough, rigid power station to replace the wobbly rotten version. I also did some other carpentry and construction that will show up in later posts ...



This is what I built.
I will probably add a slightly larger top to it so a large air pump can be securely mounted there.

Each kid in the marine science class will be managing their own large aquarium and growing the species of their choice.
We are lucky to have a good assortment of 50-60 gallon tanks, but the accessories are expensive, so we have been scrounging those up ... you know, the pumps, the filters, the gravel.

The photo above and below shows how we siphon tanks.
The siphon is started using the small black hose.
Then the drain end of the small hose is inserted into the larger black hose.

The drain end hangs out the lab door and onto the ground nearby.
Works like a charm and we don't have to use any sloppy, sloshy bucket brigade.

This small moray eel inhabits one student's tank. The PVC pipe in the picture is it's "cave".

There was a tremendous amount of cleaning and redesigning to do when I got here. That started last summer and took way more time than I expected.

(I teach 5 sciences, not just marine, so don't picture me doing this kind of stuff all day)

I WISH!

Anyway ...

We have lots to do still, but finally the kid's tanks are up and running and they are choosing their species.
A couple will be growing baby red drum (redfish) provided by the FWC hatchery.
One will be growing freshwater tropicals that are on an FFA aquaculture contest list, so she and her team can study the real things instead of just pictures.
Some will be growing local species that we will capture. I would like them to try and breed some gulf killifish, since these have excellent live bait potential for our local bait shops.

We will all be growing the prawns as a class project and we might work that into some aquaponics.

I can feel this thing gelling and I'm totally loving it.