Suckers – The Common Octopus

Originally published on Audubon Guides on July 23rd, 2012

A friend called me the other day and asked me why we don’t have octopuses in Florida. “Why?” I questioned. Apparently someone she knew was going snorkeling on the reefs in Biscayne National Park off the coast of Miami. The woman was deathly afraid of octopuses and wanted to make sure the world beneath the waves was devoid of the well-suckered ones. I laughed. We have plenty but they’re nothing to worry about.

Octopuses are mollusks, more specifically cephalopods. They’re related to snails, slugs, clams, oysters and squid. Like any carnivore, they come well equipped to hunt. Like any prey species, they are well equipped to defend themselves. Their greatest weapon perhaps is their brain, a well-developed organ with the processing power that rivals some birds and fish. Not bad for an invertebrate species in the same phylum as the slugs.

All octopuses are venomous and can secrete a chemical from their salivary glands that incapacitates prey (The only octopus that secretes a deadly neurotoxin is native to the oceans around Australia). A powerful parrot-like beak allows them to puncture the shell of their prey which is mainly mollusks and crustaceans. Cephalopod means “head” and “foot”, a perfect characterization of a massive head seemingly mounted on four pairs of legs. Each leg is armed with rows of hundreds of suckers that prevent prey from escaping their powerful grip.

Most fascinating is the ability of the octopus to change colors dramatically within seconds. The malleable mollusk is capable of squeezing and relaxing muscles that control chromatophores, specialized cells that contain a variety of pigments. These cells can mimic the color, texture and brightness of the octopus’s surroundings, enabling them to blend into their surroundings in an instant and not only ambush prey, but hide from predators.

If you snorkel or dive in Florida you will be among octopuses. The Common Octopus (Octopus vulgaris) is the – ahem – most common. You may not see them but they will most likely see you. Fear not, their preference is to remain camouflaged and undiscovered.

During a recent trip to the Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota, FL my son and I watched an octopus in an aquarium scramble across the interior glass and duck into a corner – in plain sight. It turned from a bright red to a mottled brown color. A pair of visitors ambled up, looked into the tank, scanning past the octopus and complained, “There’s nothing in here”.

Suckers.

Bite the Hand That Feeds You

Recently, an Everglades airboat captain lost his hand to an American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) during a tour. Feeding, harassing or molesting alligators is punishable with a maximum fine of up to $500 and 60 days and jail. Losing your limbs or your life is an additional punishment for bad behavior.

In all of my years in the Everglades I have seen people do some dumb things around these giant reptiles. I watched a mother with a shovel in one hand and a bag of mystery meat in the other feed a wild alligator as her small children stood by and watched. The shovel she claimed was to hit the alligator over the head if it approached. I explained to her the first rule of alligator etiquette. Don’t do dumb things. I explained the law and she left (and probably to return another day).  

© Pete Corradino

I watched in horror as a European couple walked their child down to the edge of the water and backed away to take a picture. No doubt the picture of a small child with a six foot alligator just feet away might have impressed someone but I carefully approached and pantomimed the first rule. They didn’t speak English, but “don’t do dumb things” was easily articulated with two arms making a chomping motion.

I watched two teenage boy inexplicably chasing an eight foot alligator down the main road in the Everglades National Park. I stopped them and asked them what was going to happen when they caught up to the alligator. They had no clue. The alligator found an opening in the mangroves and slipped away.

© Pete Corradino

The law has a purpose. Alligators have a natural fear of humans. In fact there have been less than 600 wild alligator attacks in Florida since 1948 and only 23 of those were fatalities. Of those attacks, most were either alligators that were fed, alligators that were being handled (molesting) or occurred when someone was swimming in the water with them.

Once an alligator loses its fear of people it becomes a dangerous alligator. If you dangle a piece of chicken in front of an alligator, it’s going to bite the hand that feeds it. 

Murder in the Marsh - The Florida Sandhill Crane

“Someone just shot a Sandhill Crane in the marsh” I said with disgust. “Is that bad” a friend asked.

Yes that’s bad.

A)    The Florida Sandhill Crane (Grus canadensis pratensis), is listed as Endangered in Florida due to habitat loss and over hunting.

B)    Hunting of Sandhill Cranes is no longer permitted in Florida.

C)    The marsh where it was shot is off limits to hunting.

D)    The marsh where it was shot is within 300 yards of an elementary school

E)     I had just been riding my bike within the range of the shooter.

While a third of the Sandhill Crane population breeds in Canada and Alaska, the Florida subspecies is non-migratory and adults are rearing chicks right now. The marsh I visited has no less than four pairs of adult Sandhill Cranes. Presently at least two of those pairs have several week old chicks. Adults form long-term pair bonds and tend to their young for up to ten months. The marsh is ideal in that the cranes create a nest of debris and vegetation surrounded by water. They feed on insects, small vertebrates, like frogs and snakes and even they also eat seeds and fruits.

The marsh is a manmade stormwater filtration wetland but considering Sandhills lost most of their wetland habitat to drainage and suffered a subsequent population decline, they’ll take what they can get. What they don’t need is a random knuckle dragger using protected birds for target practice.

As my brother-in-law and I made our way towards the exit of the marsh trail, a shot rang out ahead of us. And another. The shooter turned, with rifle drawn on us, turned back to the Sandhill and fired. The bird went down with a wing flapping. Ibis, Anhingas, Herons and Sandhills joined a frenzy of squawks as they ascended and descended on the injured bird. I expected them to fly away but they were as traumatized as we were and seemed to be rallying around the wounded bird. One final shot and the adult bird was gone.

We raced home and called the sheriff, who was dispatched immediately. The shooter left before he arrived, but the single parent, mother of two Sandhill Crane fledglings remained. 

Are You Smarter Than A Raccoon? - The Northern Raccoon

Several years ago I went camping at the Myakka River State Park. After a campfire dinner we took a walk down to the river to look at the stars and watch for gators. When we returned to our seats around the campfire we were showered with garbage! In the short time we were gone we had been raided by one of the locals, a Northern Raccoon (Procyon lotor), who had grabbed our garbage and dragged it up into the safety of an oak. There it sat eating our leftovers and hurling bun wrappers and bean cans at us. Not very smart.

I took an airboat ride in the Everglades a few years back. Raccoons live on and around the islands and take advantage of the tides where they hunt for crabs, eggs and whatever else they may find. The boat captain pulled up to a mangrove island and pointed out a raccoon on the shore. “There’s plenty to eat here, but for some reason this one is always here every day so I feed him marshmallows.” Not very smart.

On the boardwalk at the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary two women noticed a raccoon sitting in the water. One explained that they only live around dumpsters. The other nervously suggested it might be rabid and they should leave. Not very smart.

They walked off and the mother and the rest of the raccoon clan peeked out and continued poking and prodding the mud for invertebrates and other snacks. They were healthy raccoons. They were just in their natural environment.

At a local Florida beach, a teenager watched a raccoon climb a garbage can, lift the lid and pull out the garbage he had just placed in it. Incredulous, he turned to a gathering crowd and explained he had put the lid on it and doesn’t know how the raccoon did it. Not very smart.

Raccoons are found across North America. They’re adaptable, versatile, intelligent creatures who despite the reputation for carrying rabies as well as raiding our garbage cans are doing what any other species is doing. Surviving. As omnivores they have a full menu to choose from plus they have the dexterity, agility and intelligence to adapt to just about any environment.

In other words – pretty smart.

Chinese Roulette

Buying a house in Florida these days is like playing Russian Roulette. You might get a break on a foreclosure. You might get a house at 50% of the asking price from 2 years ago. And you might get a house tainted with Chinese Drywall.

As MaLe and I continue to search for an escape from the beehive (apartment complex) here in Fort Myers, we have had to cast a wider net to find the "house of our dreams" which doesn't exist because no one builds tree houses with vine elevators and bamboo cascade plumbing. Instead we're searching in an apocalyptic wasteland of vandalized homes and newly built horrors laced with sulphuric toxified drywall.

Throughout 2007 and 2008 I would decry the Lee County housing boom to my Everglades tourists as we escaped the urban sprawl and headed into the majestic swamp that I love. I despise the growth and never could understand how an economy driven by construction could be sustainable in what was once a natural landscape. Tourism needs to be king.

Lee County was one of the top 5 growing areas in the US from 2004-2008. Not so coincidentally it is now in the top 5 for foreclosures. During that time of catyclstmic growth, the US ran out of drywall and began importing hundreds of millions of sheets from China. It stands to reason that the top areas for residential growth would use the lion's share of Chinese drywall. We have a lot here and we have no idea where it all is.

Early in 2009 reports began to surface of foul smells eminating from the walls of dozens of homes in the area. The problem became a national crisis when it was determined that the sulphuric stench was coming from the drywall rending thousands of homes unlivable. Clearly drwall should not do this and as to date they have no good idea as to why it's off gassing. Nor do they have an idea of how to fix the problem. Builders are hesitant to step in although some have. Home Owner's Insurance does not cover this issue and governmental agencies are seemingly sniffing the gas themseleves and have been slow to react to the wideing crisis, although there are some efforts to support home owners. I'd love for some support for home buyers too.

The fumes are toxic. It corrodes electronics. It eats away at galvanized nails. It burns lungs and causes watery eyes. Some people have no choice but to live in their homes this way.

I feel for the people that live in these homes and have to pay mortgages. I also wonder if those that lost homes to foreclosure consider themsleves lucky to be out of the situation.

For us, the problem is growing more frustrating each day. We have been looking for houses for 5 months now. There are few in our price range and those that are could have Chinese Drywall. Sellers don't always disclose the presence of the toxic drywall. Sometimes they don't know if the house contains it. The new horror is flippers buying houses - tearing the toxic drywall out and rebuilding. They can sell a house that had Chinese Drywall without the buyer knowing. And who knows what the long term effects of the toxin will be even after the drywall is replaced.

I haven't even touched on the issue of 450 million sheets of Chinese Drywall and where it will end up.....

Putting an offer on a house tomorrow. 5 months. Time to pull the trigger.

Python Kills Toddler

A 2-year old was strangled to death by a pet Burmese Python yesterday in Orlando, FL (story). The 12 foot exotic snake from SE Asia escaped from an aquarium and was found with the lifeless child. The boyfriend of the child's mother owned the snake and did not have the proper permit to posses a "Reptile of Concern", nor did he have the good sense to secure an obviously dangerous animal.

The Burmese Python is one of top 5 largest snakes in the world and can reach lengths greater than 18 feet in the wild. In captivity they can grow quickly and this young, former pet python that we have on display is well over 19 feet and weighs over 350 pounds. It was offered to us after the owner could no longer take care of it.

While Pythons are considered relatively docile, large snakes become difficult to handle and maintain. Many have been released into the wild in Florida by owners who were incapable of

caring for them. The US Geologic Survey released a range map in 2008 that shows where Pythons have been found to date.

Biologists estimate there are over 30,000 Burmese Pythons living in Florida. Pythons are constrictors, feeding on appropriate sized mammals including the endangered Everglades Mink and Mangrove Fox Squirrel. Females lay up to 90 eggs per clutch and are quite protective of their young - making predation by raccoons, opossums and other nest raiders tough.

In over 600 tours I have led, I have only seen 2 dead Burmese on the Tamiami Trail in the Miccosukee Reservation. Both sightings happened to be the same day but more and more Pythons are seen each year.

Not only are invasive snakes a threat to the ecosystem they now inhabit - wild Pythons could soon become a threat to nature lovers enjoying the same habitat. Various places around the Internet lit up today with comments of people terrified to visit the Everglades. While it's acceptable to be concerned about the wildlife in the place you may visit, I would suggest terror might be an over exaggerated emotion in this situation. We live among Alligators with little conflict. We can do so with Burmese Pythons if we must.

A small, light-colored 12-foot Boa Constrictor rests on top of a 19-foot Burmese Python

The difficulty will be controlling their populations. Currently there is no effective way to control let alone eliminate the giant snakes. Secluded nest sites and large clutch sizes result in high survival rates. We can assume the population will grow as long as the climate remains the same.

What is utterly unacceptable is the irresponsibility of pet owners. Large snakes such as Anacondas, Burmese Pythons and Reticulated Pythons require permits to possess such snakes but there are no doubt many who shirk this legality (including the man in this incident). These snakes should always be kept secure and under no circumstance should a child ever be left where such a snake could harm them. Sadly it has happened before and it will probably happen again. People are stupid.

Sea World may want to update their "Fun Facts".

Are You Man Enough? - Attack A Shark Edition

Descartes once said "I drink therefore I fish". It was later in his life and he would have said anything to stay relevant French masses.

For me - I don't drink beer - therefore I don't fish. I don't have the patience to fish nor the inclination/demons to drink. I also don't have to prove my manhood but duping a large-toothy cartilaginous fish into thinking it's going to get a meal and than yanking it out of the water by it's face.

On June 6th and 7th - insecure people will have the opportunity to fish for sharks during the "Are You Man Enough? Shark Challenge" on Fort Myers Beach. Click on the link and you get an idea of the foolishness involved here.

And keep in mind that Fort Myers Beach and Sanibel Beach are the main draw for tourists here in Lee County. Promoting shark fishing off our shores can't be good for tourism, but I'm not so naive to think the sharks are not there. They are. In truth the tournament sends boaters up to Boca Grande where sharks are far more prevalent. Up until the protests (by groups like Shark Safe) started last week, there was no rule against killing the sharks. After public outcry, fisherman will be encouraged to catch and release.

Although I don't fish I'm not anti-sport fishing. I just take exception to the testosterone-fueled marketing campaign that demonizes sharks. I will give them credit for listening to the public and elected officials and I understand marketing is about getting attention but I call into question any one's manhood that feels the need to catch the biggest fish to prove themselves a man.

A few things to consider - there have been 7 confirmed shark attacks in Lee County since 1882!

The global threats humans cause sharks and the diminishing populations of most shark species around the world suggest we should be protecting rather than harming sharks.

For more on Shark Conservation go here - http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/Sharks/sharks.htm

and http://www.neil4sharks.org/sharkconservation.html

For moron Shark fishing go here - http://www.areyoumanenoughsharkchallenge.com/