Hurriconundrum - The White Ibis

Originally published on Audubon Guides on August 25th, 2012

On Sunday, August 26^th, Tropical Storm Isaac loomed 150 miles southwest of me in the Gulf of Mexico. For five days, hurricane trackers had forecast the storm’s position and strength and offered suggestions of where it might hit. Flooding, storm surges and high winds are a big concern. When the call goes out to evacuate, it’s time to go.

A mixed flock of Ibis, Wood Storks and Egrets © Pete Corradino

Birds and other wildlife are sensitive to barometric pressure changes. When storms rage through, strong fliers will depart in advance of the approaching storm. Tree cavity dwellers like owls and woodpeckers will take shelter while others will simply gran a branch, hang on and ride it out. The ibis can fly at speeds of up to 28 miles per hour, so it is possible that they are the last to go, but Ibis also amass in huge flocks and fly in “V” formation making them conspicuous to even a non-birder.

The White Ibis was named the mascot for the Miami Hurricanes back in 1926 because as the school’s website states, “Folklore maintains that the Ibis is the last sign of wildlife to take shelter before a hurricane and the first to reappear after the storm.” Clearly this is fact because several other websites state that “Folklore maintains that the Ibis is the last sign of wildlife to take shelter before a hurricane and the first to reappear after the storm.”

White Ibis © Pete Corradino

I was born and raised in Florida. In my 41 years I have yet to experience a hurricane (lucky!). I’m sure it made little sense to others that a native Floridian was asking when and if we will need to evacuate. I wonder if the birds do as well. Do they look to the Ibis or decide for themselves when it’s time to go? There are plenty of people who wait until the last minute to evacuate and then it may be too late.

Juvenile White Ibis © Pete Corradino

Thankfully there was no need for me to evacuate and I had the opportunity to watch to see which birds returned first. Keep your eyes open – with storms like these, occasionally a rare species like the Greater Flamingo will have been gusted north and made a rare appearance in Florida. 

Swamp Cabbage Patch Kids

If you’ve ever seen a palm fly by at 60 MPH you were either in a hurricane or watching palms being transported on a flatbed truck. There are over 2500 palm species in the world and many have shallow root systems that allow them to bend in the wind but can be plucked from the ground and relocated by landscapers.

A safer and more natural way to discover the beauty and diversity of palms is to take drive through any neighborhood in south Florida. Over twenty-five species are used as ornamentals but only ten are actually native.

The Sabal Palm (Sabal palmetto) was voted Florida’s state tree in 1953 after what I can only imagine was a contentious and bitter dispute between the two state branches of congress. The House selected the regal Royal Palm (Roystonea regia) in 1949 but when the Senate passed on the idea, it wasn’t until four years later that the ubiquitous and iconic Sabal Palm with its fan-shaped fronds became the official state tree.

Palms are unique in that they don’t have bark, cambium or heartwood like most trees. Instead they have an inner core protected by an outer sheath and both sections have living tissue. Most palms grow from a terminal bud out of the top of the tree with some exceptions that branch, including the Saw Palmetto (Serenoa repens).

Growing up in Venice, FL my family would often camp along the Myakka River. During nature walks, my dad would find a young Sabal Palm, aka Cabbage Palm. He would cut the new growth which resembled cabbage and my sisters and I would eat it, and - surprisingly enjoyed it. We call this treat Swamp Cabbage down here. You’ve probably eaten it too. They sell it in stores and serve it in restaurants with the entirely more delectable name of Heart-of-Palm.

Sabal Palms are considered one of the hardiest palms and can be found throughout the southeastern United States. In south Florida they’re found in lawns, parking lots, oak forests, cypress swamps, coastal areas and occasionally in the middle of your living room after a hurricane. 

Pigeon Forge - Another Apology

I've been away on vacation, but in my absence a few posts that I had written before I left came out a bit screwy. The previous of which "Polar Bear Opposites" was sabotaged and some of the text did not appear. I blame the NSA but that's what I get for showing my political leanings.

It is fixed now.

Anyway. I'm back and will post some Smokey Mountain spelunking, salamandering and "bear frightening baby" photos over the next few days, but to lighten the mood and assure I have a post that does not mention hurricanes - here's a few photos of our final adventure from Pigeon Forge, TN. (Described in a travel guide as such -"If this town were a haircut - it would be a mullet")

MaLe was too scared to race on the 4 story go-kart track and Ash "had to hold the baby", so Kate humored me and raced around the track of doom. When in Pigeon Forge do as the tattooed, tube-topped, chain-smoking teenage locals do.

7-10 Split

We're finally heading to the Great Smokey Mountains for out "honeymoon". We'll be missing the 7-10 Split Bowling Event this evening in Naples (Sorry Gomer and Kara). That is if Hurricane Gustav doesn't alter plans.

We'll get a 7-10 split of our own as that hurricane passes by and Tropical Storm Hannah lingers to the east. We'll squeeze up I-75 between the two storms and hope that all remains well back at home. On our way north, we hope to stop at Ziggy's - an animal sanctuary in Lake City, FL where 4 of our monkeys from the former Florida Monkey Sanctuary now reside. Most noteable is Gertie - a 26 year old spider monkey who was raised by my parents and is like a long lost sister to me. There may be tears. 100% chance if she remembers me.

Gertie is seen above - swaddled in the pink and white crocheted blanket - playing the role of the baby Jesus. (circa 1983?) Gertie was brought to a new sanctuary in 2008 after suffering was a skin problem (seen below) at her home in North Carolina. I'm told she's doing much better.
Then its up to Tennessee for a few days of hiking, waterfalls, train rides and cave exploration.

I hope everyone stays safe in the storms.

HurriCone Honeymoon

I rarely buy into the hype. I'm not one to succumb to mania or participate in a frenzy but when my home is projected to be within the HurriCone I can't help but freak out a little bit. First of all I would trademark "HurriCone" but apparently its some type of floor drying equipment. "Floor soaking wet from the latest storm? You need a HurriCone!"

2nd of all - I'm in the freaking cone for Tropical Storm Gustav.

My boss says don't worry as he packs his travel bags to head to the Dominican Republic. My dad says not to worry as I need to pack my bags to head to the Great Smokey Mountains for our honeymoon. Mine and Ma-Le's. Not Mine and my fathers.




The cone essentially represents the area that a hurricane has the potential of hitting. It's the probability that suggests if God drops his ice cream - will it land on you?

Fay has passed by and here comes Gustav. It quickly went from Tropical Wave to Tropical Depression to Tropical Storm and Hurricane within 24 hours before weakening over the mountains of Haiti. But forecasters say it will head through the Gulf of Mexico and as of right now (Wednesday 8/27) the storm is forecasted to head towards New Orleans by Sunday. It could go any which way regardless of the cone. I know that.

But Tennessee doesn't get hurricanes. Right?

Bad Behavior of Hurricanes and Senators

Hurricane names are like Senators. If the hurricane doesn't make much of a commotion they get to come back every six years. But do something disastrous and they get retired, leaving us to talk for years to come about the damage they've done and the billions they have cost us.

Hurricane Arlene is the Daniel Inouye (D-HI 1963-Present) of storm names. Every 6 years she has a chance to wreak some havoc but she never seems to cause much trouble. She first appeared in 1959 as a tropical storm and returned as a hurricane in 1963, 1967 and as a tropical storm again in 1971. She took a decade off before welling up again in 1981. In 1979, a list of 21 names went into circulation, followed in the next 5 years by 5 distinct sets of names which would rotate from year to year. So Arlene returned again in 1987, 1993, 1999 and again in 2005. Being the first of the storms named and often early in the season, she rarely has a chance to be anything special but she's tried 9 times.

Initially storms were only given names if they were horribly destructive like the Great Galveston Hurricane of 1900 and the Great Miami Hurricane in 1926. From 1950-1952 storms were named based on the army alphabet - Able, Baker, Charlie, etc.

In 1953, The National Hurricane Center began using women's names. The feminine touch softened the blow of having your community razed and flooded by an act of God.

Names were reflective of the times - Gilda, Hazel, Mabel, Norma, Roxie, Edith, Flora. The didn't push it and Harriet never made the list. They went so far as to schedule the X, Y and Z. Although they were never used, if they needed to, no one would have forgotten Hurricane Xmay, Yurith or Zorna.

A four year rotation of women's names was used from 1960-1978. And the 6 year cycle began in 1979 and included men's names.

The World Meteorological Organization allows for the retirement of storm names if they are particularly deadly, costly or silly sounding. The country affected can request the retirement and the name is stricken from the rotation if the WMO deems it worthy. Hazel was the first of the naughty storms and she was retired in 1954, followed by 39 other storms. The last being Noel in 2007 who ironically hit the North Pole.

The only exception to the rule was when Fern was dropped and replaced by Frieda for no particular reason. Possibly because Fern is a type of plant. Significant of nothing, I once had a hamster named Fern.

Senators are retired in a similar fashion. Do bad things and your retirement will be arranged for you. Affairs, financial scandals and "pooping" in airport bathrooms are the equivalent of flooding, 150 mph winds and hitting Greenland.

But if the worst thing you've ever done is rain in the middle of the Atlantic or filibuster a Republican majority you'll be hangin' 10 year after year on the Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development.

Although "only" a tropical storm, Fay has proven to be the Larry Craig of storms, causing persistent trouble and won't seem to go away.

Stormy Wither - Rainstorm Fay

What does Star Wars: the Phantom Menace, Haley's Comet and Y2K all have in common with Tropical Storm Fay? They didn't live up to the hype. For varying reasons to be sure but for the storm that withered as it passed Fort Myers it was disappointing. I blame Jim Cantore. He's the guy on the weather channel standing in front of a pounding surf and telling people not to be complacent about a storm despite the fact that he's standing on the wind scoured beach dodging coconuts and sheet rock. When there's a storm on the way, the Weather Channel crews are out in force, assuring that Armageddon will be televised or at least a kitesurfers disastrous flight through the streets of Fort Lauderdale will be caught on video.

So when Tropical Storm Fay failed to develop into a hurricane, came ashore at Marco Island 35 miles south and passed over Immokalee 20 miles east with 65 mile an hour winds on Tuesday 8/19th, it was disappointing to look out and see drizzle and a few shaking palms. It was as if Fort Myers was in a protective bubble and you would think that would be met with a collective sigh.

Yet many hoped for more excitement from the storm. Why? It's not a New England nor'easter where you simply have to bundle up and shovel yourself out. Hurricanes can be catastrophic and they destroy homes, businesses and lives but the sense here was of great disappointment and in some cases annoyance that we had to stock up, prepare the home, batten down the hatches and all for what? A storm less dramatic than our usual afternoon thunderstorms.

There is a general sense of monotony in our day to day lives that is livened by the possibility of something out of the ordinary. It gives us something to witness, experience and hopefully live to talk about. I hear it all the time down here as the after effects of Hurricanes Charley, Ivan and Jeanne in 2004 and Wilma in 2005 still resonate with those who survived them. They were destructive and in some cases debilitating for some, but it gives us a reference point on our individual timelines that is easy to pick out.

Fay continues to smack Florida and has caused considerable damage after intensifying over land on Tuesday and is about to punch out into the Atlantic. We shouldn't be disappointed that we were spared the excitement. Others to our north will have hoped to have been spared after this storm withers and passes but no doubt they will remember Tropical Storm Fay.

The Clam Before the Storm - Hurricane Fay?

It smells like a monkey in here. It's getting dark outside. The rain has begun to fall and the wind is howling at only 10-15 mph. Tropical Storm Fay is expected to reach hurricane status in the next few hours and Fort Myers is expected at this time (5:40 pm Monday) to take a direct hit.

People are boarding up their homes and burrowing in like clams in advance of the storm. (See I was going somewhere with that title. It's not just another misspelling.)

We decided to return from Fort Lauderdale last night at 11 pm to make sure everything was secure at home and so we could evacuate with the cats if necessary. We stopped at the Wal-Mart in Miromar since that was all that was open and we needed a few last minute things. Miromar is north of Miami and apparently we arrived just after the looting occurred. The shelves were bare of hurricane supplies like water, food, propane....it was weird. When we arrived in Fort Myers at 2 am, two of the gas stations were out of gas. We filled up near the house and headed for bed, expecting a busy Monday. But its been quiet and remains quiet except for the occasional howl of the wind.

We have our batteries, candles, cupcakes, water and everything else required to survive a storm for the next few days if need be. This thing may just blow by. But better to be stocked up. Hurricane Wilma knocked out power for weeks in some places. We could go live in Kenny's truck if we needed to. I think it's a certified fallout shelter.

But for now we wait. I brought the cat carriers inside in case we need to evacuate them. In truth the carriers are former monkey "sky kennels" used to transport monkeys to my parents old Monkey Sanctuary. I forgot how much they still smell like monkey. Maybe I should leave them outside until the worst comes. The clam shell hasn't been completely closed yet.

Tink! - Tropical Storm Fay

As a kid I always loved the board game Bermuda Triangle. The purpose was to move your four ships around the Caribbean and Atlantic, picking up cargo and avoiding the massive hurricane that randomly spun across the board.

Now I feel like I'm part of the game and it was only a matter of time before a hurricane came my way. I've lived in Florida for 28 years of my life and never had a hurricane pass by. This one is making me nervous. MaLe and I are heading to Fort Lauderdale now for a wedding (Sunday 8/17), but may have to return Sunday night to retrieve cats or hunker down with them if things get sour. Maybe it'll go to Texas. In the board game, if the hurricane spun over the top of you, it made a sickening "tink" sound when the magnet sucked up your ship. I'm thinking the noise will be a little different in real life and as far as I know magnets are not involved.

StormWatch: Noel

When has taunting nature ever resulted in anything good happening? I recently debated my boss about the usefulness of predicting seasonal hurricanes. I saying that even the leading expert is always wrong, he saying otherwise. I get irked when they "reforecast" and when the latest (4th) reforecast (spellcheck does not even recognize this word!) came out a few weeks ago I had to laugh. The original forecast called for 17 named storms, 9 major hurricanes and 5 that would hit the US with outrageous force. I scoffed at what has amounted to a pathetic hurricane season.

The latest and most annoying is Noel the androgynous hurricane. Also the 15th. Many of the preceding storms were nothing more than mid-Atlantic burps. With few storms even coming close to Florida, we've been below average for rainfall. It's good for tourism, not so good for the natural world. But Noel is an unwanted guest for me for selfish reason. I'm flying to Guayaquil, Ecuador from Miami on Friday and I want this storm to go away now. The only storm to make landfall along the Atlantic was Gabrielle which hit the Carolinas when I flew back from Boston in September. Not a fan of flying in, over or through storms. It's all about me.
I'll look on the bright side - the storm should bring more much needed rain and then the quandary of water woes will be lessened and the need for signs like the following (from the Fort Lauderdale Best Western) will be diminished.

I still haven't figured out if the State requires that you flush twice or if a second flush is necessitated by the equipment required. Chicken or the egg? If it smells like either - flush it.

Aqua Roulette or Why I Hate the Weather Man

Previously on JunglePete's Everglades Adventure -

I don't know why subscribers received a recap of the the first ten blogs. I had nothing to do with it, but apparently at least one of you enjoyed them again like fond childhood memories of H.R.Puffenstuff and Ooops All Berries Captain Crunch. You liked it so much the first time, you had to have more.

The 9th Florida Panther was struck and killed just off of the interstate on Tuesday. The record for vehicle caused fatalities was 11 in 2006. I would imagine that record will be broken.

Funny thing about forecasts. This afternoon I went to a speech by Jim Cantore of The Weather Channel.

He's the guy on TWC usually standing somewhere around the gulf of Mexico when a massive hurricane is about to hit. Never mind the storm surge, the 75 mph winds and the shingles flying by. He wants you to know it's dangerous!

He was announcing the 2007 Hurricane Report for about 500 members of the Fort Myers Chamber of Commerce. (chamber meetings....and you thought Red Algae was fascinating!) His estimates were a bit more tempered than the official report of 17 major storms for this year. He predicts 10. Of course last year they predicted 15 and there were 0 so the margin of error seems to be +/- 15.

His message was that hurricanes are still impossible to predict. His goal is to make sure people "get out of the way". Except for him. And despite the fact that it's hard to know where they will hit. So really just be prepared. Evacuate if you need to and don't if you don't have to. Depends on where the storm will go. Predictions say north into the gulf but it could turn at any moment. Keep watching your TV and if Jim Cantore is outside of your house you probably should have evacuated.

In 2005 after Katrina, leery Texas residents evacuated in droves as Hurricane Rita bore down on the Lone Star State. (Don't mess with Texas does not apply to acts of God.) More people lost their lives on the evacuation routes than from the actual hurricane. Moral of the story? Don't evacuate? Or maybe just don't watch the weather channel. It may cause freak outs.

If traffic was bad with millions of people on the roads during "the season", imagine what it will be like with 6 million people trying to go north. Or east if Jim Cantore tells us to. Or just get away from the storm or don't evacuate. It's really up to you. Just stay tuned. It's all too confusing and really a game of aqua roulette. Where will the rain and storm surge hit? Spin the wheel of doom!

Typically we get about 12 inches of rain from November to May (aka the dry season) Over the last 6 months, south Florida has experienced one of the worst droughts and until Monday we have had 3.5 inches of rain. Fires have scorched millions of acres across the state and many were hoping for a tropical storm to bring rain. Fortunately the rainy season has begun and the official start of the hurricane season begins June 1st. We have received nearly 7 inches of rain since Monday which has suppressed many fires and extinguished the chants for a tropical storm.

As meteorological forecasting technology becomes more sophisticated we seem to have less accurate forecasting. Maybe it is just me. Personally I like how they predict weather in Ecuador - with the weather rock seen below attached to the green rope.

If the rock is swinging - it is windy
If the rock is wet - it is raining
If the rock is violently shaking - there is an earthquake.
and so on...

We can't predict very well where hurricanes will hit until they are far too close. We have too many people living directly in the paths of hurricanes. Here at Casa Pedro y Ma-Le we're preparing our hurricane plan, but the best prepared person has to prepare for the least prepared person as well, because when water, gas, food and other necessities are in short supply, the unprepared look to the prepared. It makes me a bit nervous.

I have lived in Florida for 28 years of my life and have yet to experience a hurricane. (Got a tropical storm in Vermont in 1998 though!). Here's hoping I still don't this year. As for the 17 predicted major storms? Let's hope the weather man is wrong as usual.....