We’re still puzzled over this one. On a visit to the Florida Aquarium this past weekend, our family - and quite a few passersby - noted a strange phenomenon going on with a certain pufferfish in a saltwater tank near the Tampa Bay exhibits. It had something to do with my camera, or any camera. Perhaps it could see itself in the lens? The fish kept following the camera lens around, no matter how high or low I put it … it tried to get just a little higher than the lens so it could look directly into it. Running without flash, I shot a lot of frames, with this being the most colorful and crisp.
I’ve always been a fan of turtles. I grew up surrounded by dozens of little mud and musk turtles, painted turtles, map turtles, box turtles, and, of course, the turtle that every pet shop had by the dozens: red-eared sliders. I learned rather recently that they, like the insidious Cuban tree frogs and iguanas, are non-native species to Florida, wreaking havoc on natural systems.
Now, the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission has set new rules regarding these once-popular pets: they can be pets no more. According to their website:
People who possess red-eared sliders acquired before July 1, 2007, may keep those specimens without a permit until they are legally transferred or disposed of. After July 1, 2008, however, no one may have a red-eared slider as a pet that is less than 4 inches in size. Those owning the turtles legally may not allow them to reproduce, and all eggs must be destroyed.
Given the numbers of red-eared sliders I’ve seen throughout the state, in waterways and in parks, under human control and not … I do wonder how a person “may not allow them to reproduce”?
A Christmas morning “Merry Christmas” from our home to yours … and best wishes for a happy and healthy (and full of hiking!) New Year.
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Here’s hubby Rob hard at work signing stacks of his annual original Christmas cards … now much mailing is in order!
If you’re like me, you read a lot … you keep up with some of the news … and NONE of the Presidential candidates stand out as someone you’d like to see in the Oval Office, especially with how it’s become such a fixer-upper.
To help you (and I) along, the Internet works its magic with your choice of Select-a-Candidate quizzes that help you determine (somewhat) whose platform parallels your thinking. Caveat emptor and have fun with these!
http://www.vajoe.com/candidate_calculator.html
http://selectsmart.com/president/2008.html
http://minnesota.publicradio.org/projects/ongoing/select_a_candidate/
http://www.speakout.com/VoteMatch/senate2006.asp?quiz=2008
