June 2 – Wealth of the Oceans NOAA Infographic

Surf Fishing for Pompano

Surf fishing for pompano on Perdido Key often means having a companion heron

NOAA Photo Catching Snapper on the Gulf

Red Snapper are welcome on most dinner tables; dates available for catching them are closely controlled by State and Federal authorities to allow stocks to grow and are carefully watched by commercial and recreational fishermen Photo courtesy of Fish and Wildlife Research Institute USS Oriskany Dive Site

Florida Dept. of State Photo at http://www.floridapanhandledivetrail.com/oriskany.html • The USS Oriskany CV/CVA 34) was a US Navy aircraft carrier commissioned in 1950; it saw service in the Korean and Vietnam Wars • In 2006, the decommissioned ship was deliberately sunk in 200 feet of water 22 miles south of the entrance to Pensacola Harbor and became the world’s largest artificial ; it is an internationally known and popular diving location nicknamed the “Great Carrier Reef” Some Sharks in the Gulf

• Bull sharks can inhabit fresh water and are among the • Lemon sharks inhabit coastal most likely shark to attack areas and can grow to over humans 10 ft

NOAA Photo NOAA Photo

• Some sharks have become • Blacktip sharks may spin endangered such as while hunting hammerheads which may die after “catch and release”

NOAA Photo NOAA Photo • Sandbar sharks typically feed on bottom dwelling animals • Nurse sharks are sedentary like crabs and octopus but can still bite!

NPS Caroline Rogers Photo NOAA Photo Sea Turtles and Sea Birds

Kemp’s Ridley Turtle NOAA

Brown Pelican Courtesy Connie Walker Leatherback Turtle

Blue Heron Courtesy Connie Walker

Osprey NPS/Murphy Loggerhead Turtle NOAA Black Skimmers Courtesy Glen Tepke http://www.pbase.com/gtepke Turtle NOAA Along the Seashore

Sand Dollar Portuguese Man O’ War Sand Flea M. Reed NPS Elizabeth Condon NSF Rebekah D Wallace NPS

Moon Jellies Horseshoe Crab Ecology.wa.gov NOAA Sargassum Seaweed Michael Owen Manatees in Florida

• Manatees have been increasingly sighted in Big Lagoon and neighboring waterways of Northwest Florida and Alabama • Regrettably at least 317 manatee deaths have occurred in Florida the first two months of 2021, much more that the past five year average of 100 deaths a year • According to director of the Save the Manatee Club Pat Rose: “It looks like we have a substantial number of manatees that are starving”; poor water quality from stormwater runoff leading to algae blooms and loss of sea grass could be responsible • Those using boats and jet skies Keith Ramos USFWS on Florida waterways should take extra caution to avoid hitting Nicole White April 2020 these gentle giants

Our Oceans are Vast and Wonderful