SEA TURTLES ON SOUTH PADRE ISLAND

Geri and I toured the Sea Turtle Rescue Center on South Padre Island. We didn't know what to expect and were pleasantly surprised. Upon entering the Center we saw several large tanks. There were also various posters and displays to be read for information about sea turtles. We listened to the tour guide and viewed different species of turtles in the large tanks. Visit one of these sites for more information:
http://www.seaturtleinc.org/
http://www.texasturtles.org/

The turtle to the right is handicapped. Usually turtles that are severely hurt are euthanized. This turtle caught the hearts of several volunteers, so they figured out a devise mounted on top of a small jacket, which is strapped to the turtle's back. The turtle has learned to use the flippers he has left along with the rutter on the jacket to maneuver around it's tank. Most turtles are healed and released, but this one will stay in the tank as an educational aid.
On the left is a very large turtle named Gerry. His name used to be Geraldine, until someone discovered she was a male turtle.  My sister, Geri, is taking a picture of Gerry. He could live to be 100 years old and get to weigh as much as 600 pounds!  Gerry was very large and seemed to enjoy watching the people watching him. His eyes were right on me below!

On Tuesday night, to our surprise and delight, the Winter Texan Meeting had a display about the Sea Turtles in Texas and a speaker that was very informative.  She talked about how the turtles are protected and told us it is illegal to use the shells to make decorative items, boots, purses or anything else. If items are discovered they will be confiscated, as the boots she had on display.

Her display also had an example of what a nest might look like. There are people that go out looking for nests, digging them up and protecting them until the turtles start to hatch. They are then released, in hopes that many make it into adulthood. This is a very large project on South Padre Island, in which dozens of volunteers participate in.  There is also a volunteer that has trained his dog to hunt for turtle nests!

It was a great day at the Turtle Center and an informative evening at the Winter Texan Meeting.

Baby swimming over the mother, in one of the tanks.

~ A MIXTURE OF PICTURES ~

The last post about our Biloxi/New Orleans trip.

Another solar home in New Orleans, the area Brad Pitt is helping out.             
Painting on the pillars under the
overpass in New Orleans.

Fats and his musical buddies.  A beloved pet in front of his owner's establishment on Bourbon Street.

CAFE DU MONDE    

Established in 1862 in the New Orleans French Market the Cafe is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Closing only on Christmas Day and if a hurricance passes close to the area. 
The Cafe Du Monde Coffee and Chicory is traditionally served Au Lait, mixed half and half with hot milk. Of course, people have preferences and you can put your order in, for how you prefer your coffee--I had hot cocoa.  Geri and I also had beignets, which are fried fritters drenched in powdered sugar. They are served in orders of three, so we split one of them!  YUMMY~~~~nice afternoon break from shopping the funky stores and much lower priced market, which was just down the street.

Some of the alleys were spiffed up with plants and hanging pieces of art.  You really need to walk slowly, trying to take it all in. I'm sure we missed wonderful streets, great art, and fantastic music, but that gives us a reason to return to this fun city of New Orleans!

We saw a lot of "Wildlife" near Bourbon St. but not of the kind in the above sign!  We saw this sign several times along the road going into the National Park, near Biloxi, Mississippi.  We did not see turtles, or any other life at the park.  The volunteer on duty, the day we were there, explained how the Nature Center was 5 feet under water.  Five feet of water basically destroyed the displays and the building needed to be renovated.  If the building was under 5ft. of water the surrounding preserve, where the birds and animals lived, was 15 feet under water. The building being on the highest ground in the park.

With all the flooding, from Katrina, the park is just coming back from the destruction.  The birds and animals have all but disappeared. It will take time for the plants to return--so the birds and animals will return when the plants are there for food and shelter.

It certainly wakes you up to realize that not only the people but every living thing was affected by the destruction of such a major hurricane.