Mermaids, Manatees and Mastodons (Florida)
Awide-open expanse of beach, no matter how lovely, provides no room for mystery, no space to keep secrets. But head inland a few kilometers to the land of springs and rivers. This is the off-the-beach Florida. This is the shady side of Florida, where cool shadows of cypress, magnolia, palms and mighty oaks garlanded with Spanish moss guard a history, a culture that belongs only to Florida. This is a Florida where visitors can slip into an almost mystical state where mermaids, manatees and mastodons roam.
Mermaids
In 1947, Weeki Wachee Park opened the first underwater theater. Visitors could watch the spring’s native fishes and turtles conduct their daily business. Mermaids and mermen also inhabited the spring. These were not ordinary merpeople. These were merpeople taking advantage of Newt Perry’s expertise as a swimmer (he was known as the “human fish”) and choreographer of underwater performances. Perry also developed a system of air locks and air hoses that allowed non-gilled creatures to stay underwater far longer than they could hold their breaths. The system also allowed performers to regulate their movements up and down in the spring as they executed marvelously elaborate underwater ballets. Using Perry’s nifty inventions, mermaids could perform underwater stunts and illusions – they smoked cigars, ate bananas, sipped soda from a straw and gathered for picnics under the cool, clear water of the spring. Then and now, local fish and turtles take swim-on roles in the performances, mostly as background special effects, but the occasional manatee sometimes wanders into the underwater theater during a performance and steals the show.
The natural beauty of the area provides as much magic as the mermaids. The spring water bubbles up clear and cold, filling the spring that flows through the semi-tropical forest of palm, laurel oak, sweet gum and magnolia. Native birds such as snowy egrets, limpkin and wood storks share the space with exotic peacocks. Alligators and turtles bask in the sun along the banks. To enjoy the scenery, take a river boat cruise or rent a canoe or kayak from the park’s concession.
Though Vegas has taken over the illusion business, and New York the ballet, the roadside attraction near Weeki Wachee, Florida – population 12 – is still host to the only mermaid theater in the world.
Weeki Wachee Springs State Park is located at 6131 Commercial Way, Spring Hill, Florida at the intersection of State Road 50 and Highway 19, a few kilometres inland from the Gulf of Mexico on Florida’s west coast.
Manatees
Manatees, including mothers with their calves, begin migrating into Florida’s warm waters in mid-November. The species, protected under the U.S. Federal Endangered Species Act, winter in Florida’s shallow bays, rivers and springs. Homosassa is one of those springs. Homosassa Springs also served time as a roadside attraction. In the early 1900s, trains stopped to give the passengers a spring break while the trains were loaded with fish, crabs, cedar, and spring water. In the 1940s, Nature’s Giant Fishbowl was built alongside the main spring. From this floating observatory, visitors can go under water to view the spring’s manatees and fish, lots of fish – 34 species have been identified in the spring.
In 1969, Ivan Tors opened the nation’s first animal actors’ training school on the site. Visitors to the park could watch the animals train, or just relax, while they were between gigs. Animal stars from 1960s U.S. TV series and many movies were guests there. Though the training school for animal actors is no longer in session, one of the original actors still makes his home at the park - Lucifer, the hippopotamus. Born at California’s San
Diego Zoo in 1960, Lu moved to Florida in 1964 to become a movie and television star. Lu has long retired from his acting career, but still poses for photos. The cast of characters at Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park includes a multitude of native and exotic stars – alligator, black bear, red wolf, key deer, whooping cranes, and flamingo.
Although the zoological park showcases several animals, a significant number of free-range species also make use of the area. Florida black bears migrate through the park. Herons and egrets forage, roost, and breed within the park. Wading birds, taking advantage of the park’s amenities, have established a rookery in the trees surrounding the alligator enclosure. Evidently, alligators act as a natural deterrent to bird-nest predators.
In addition to being a winter retreat for visiting manatees, the park serves as a rehabilitation center for injured and orphaned manatees and other Florida creatures. Yuma, a panther kitten, recently moved to the park. Biologists found the one-week-old kitten, abandoned and barely alive. After months of recovery and rehabilitation, the kitten moved to the park, since he, like many of the park’s resident birds and animals, cannot return to the wild. Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park is one of the few places where visitors can see manatees year-round from the park’s underwater observatory. Educational programs on manatees, alligators and other Florida wildlife are presented daily.
Only a few kilometers from Florida’s west coast, Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park is located at 4150 South Suncoast Boulevard, Homosassa, Florida, just off Highway 19, about an hour’s drive north of Weeki Wachee’s mermaid theater.
Mastodons
Wakulla Springs was popular long before Hollywood rolled in with Tarzan. Long before the springs posed as a black lagoon for a fairly odd creature, fairly odd creatures (by today’s standards) lolled about the area eating, drinking and repopulating their species until it was time to go extinct. As early as 1850, researchers were pulling large animal bones from Wakulla Springs. In the
1930s, Florida Geological Survey divers recovered a complete mastodon skeleton from the spring.
Mammal bone deposits found in the spring, the underwater caves and in the river indicate that big - prehistoric big - beasties roamed the area. Fossils of extinct species– mastodon, giant sloth, horse, bison and camel – tell tales of a land before time.
On days (usually in late winter or early spring) when Wakulla’s waters run crystal clear, visitors can gaze into the spring’s abyss. The ancient remains of mastodons can be seen resting on the basin’s steep sandy slopes. When the water is clear, park visitors can see to a depth of about 38 m (125 ft) where the bottom slopes under a limestone edge.
Riverboat cruises take visitors along the Wakulla River, lined with bald cypress, oaks and magnolia, where anhinga spread their wings to the sun, where turtles and alligators loll along the banks, where herons, egrets and white ibis pass the time of day.
Back at the lodge, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, visitors can book a room, order fresh seafood and local favorites in the dining room overlooking the spring, and enjoy an ice cream soda at the classic soda fountain.
Edward Ball Wakulla Springs State Park is located at 465 Wakulla Park Drive in Wakulla Springs, Florida, about 30 kilometers from Tallahassee, the state’s capital city.
Beyond the beach
Many think “beach” when they think of Florida. Beach: the place where sea shells, sand castles and salt water define space and place. But Florida is also where manatees gather in the winter, where mermaids swim, where mastodons have lain down their bones. Beyond the condo-lined shore, beyond the Interstate lie marvelous bits of Florida history, culture, and a native landscape beyond the scope of human architects and contractors. Welcome to Florida, a mystical state. Find information about Florida’s 161 state parks, activities and overnight accommodations at FloridaStateParks.org.