Monday, September 10, 2012

Manatee Mating Video

Sunday was Mom's birthday, so we raced across the state to St. Augustine to celebrate her wonderful sweet self.

It took two vehicles, and since the JEEP is, well, a JEEP, and Bear is, well, um , Bear-sized, ... it fell to me to ride over with the huge black lab as my copilot.

His presence is required of course, because he has completely schmoozed my Mom into loving him as a hairy, messy grandson.

"Is Bear coming?" She asks each time I tell her I'm coming over for a visit.

Translation: "I sure hope Bear is coming with you."

And so he does.

Anyway, I was running behind schedule as usual, but not too bad.

In fact I was practically on time, until I crossed the bridge from Palatka proper to "East Palatka.

Technically, I wasn't even all the way across, when scanning the water as I do, a big splash caught my eye.

Now one splash could be anything, but roiling water and repeated splashes ... well, that earns an extra look.
Sure enough, in a quiet cove, right next to the busy highway, a pair of manatees were romancing and prancing in a Sirenian sort of ballet.

I told Bear, "I know this will be a waste of time, but we are turning around and going back to look."

We made it off the bridge, hung a U-turn at the first opportunity and zipped back to the manatee mosh pit.

I fully expected them to be submerged or gone by the time I got down to the shore, but NO, they were fully focused on their foamy frolic.

It was grey, windy, and threatening to rain, so the light isn't great, but my trusty 7 year old Sony came through with some video to share with you.

I filmed for about 15 minutes and yes, I was late for the birthday lunch, but not by too much.

Mom understood.
I wasn't surprised at that ...
In fact, I knew she would expect me to stop and capture the scene.

The orange doesn't fall far from the tree ... and vis versa.
You know what I mean.

Here's the clip.





18 comments:

Deb said...

Well, now I've seen everything! Just when I thought Pure Florida could not get any better...Manatee love!

Sharon said...

Love it! Even mood music! I have to admit though, the whole time I watched all I could hear was "Barbara Manatee, you are the one for me!" LOL. Don't know if your kids were into Veggietales...if not, that won't make a bit of sense :)

Deb said...

Sharon- I was thinking that myself! LOL!

R.Powers said...

My kids just missed the Veggietales series. I to know the Barney song though.

Island Rider said...

Manatee porn! More Little manatees for our state is a good thing!

Banjo52 said...

The video is plenty entertaining, esp. with soundtrack, but your narration above it is very appealing too--just the right amount of schmaltz, not over the top. A mom that loves a "hairy, messy grandson" of a dog has to be a pretty good mom.

threecollie said...

Love it! You and Miss Sara-n sure get along well.

Anonymous said...

Really great video; loved watching them. I have an affection for these loveable creatures and in fact have a manatee charm on one of my bracelets. I became quite concerned about their survival many years ago upon hearing about their susceptibility to injury and/or death due to boat propellers. I hope for the best for them.
Momadness

Anonymous said...

You do get to see the coolest things, FC.

Sharon said...

Deb, I had the song in my head for hours LOL. FC, you should view it on youtube - "Endangered Love", it's a must see :-D

Sayre said...

Wonderful! I've got to send this to a friend of mine who loves all things manatee. Thanks!

Dina J said...

I have to show this to my husband so he understands I'm not the only one who turns around for wildlife. I would have wanted to stay forever. I'm sure when your mom saw the video she was excited. Really cool!

Mockingbird said...

Very cool video!
I know that bridge; I know that Uturn; and I know that small cove.
A girl from Palatka showed me that spot, and I kissed and hugged her for that.(1970)

Anonymous said...

FC is frequently late but it is hard to be too annoyed because well he really is a great guy AND you know that with the lateness will come an interesting tale! He should just go ahead and write that nature book called " why I was late"! (Don't u all agree?) Mrs FC SIT

R.Powers said...

Okay y'all,
Thanks for the insightful comments, believe it or not, at another bridge yesterday, a large splash caused another U-turn, but this was no manatee.
Soon come.


Hmmm, Mrs. FC may be biased, but in the meantime ... OMG! She commented!
LOL!

Mockingbird, it seems like an appropriate response for such a pretty cove.

Anonymous said...

Must agree with Mrs. FC. Would make a great book or documentary, even.
Momadness

Anonymous said...

So glad I finally came up for air and checked in over here! I'm excited by Mrs FC's comment! Behind every great guy there is an AWESOME woman, you know its true.

Anonymous said...

That was me, Miz S.