We took a trip to the Manatee Viewing Center. When the temperature falls below 68 degrees Fahrenheit in Tampa Bay the manatees come into the warm water discharge canal that's next to the power plant to get warm. The center also has a tidal walkway which is through a mangrove habitat. There is also a Manatee Museum with lots of fun and a Butterfly Habitat.
First we had to get to the manatees. There were so many we couldn't keep count. As soon as we thought we had a good count another would pop up. There were well over 50 in the canal.
The regulars. We wouldn't have known if we seen these or not. There were just so many manatees out this day.
All of the little spots in the water are manatees. :)
The boys loved looking at the manatees and trying to count them.
Next stop was the Manatee Museum. I was pleasantly surprised with everything in there. I was thinking it was going to be a waste even walking in, but it was quite nice.
The boys played a manatee racing game.
We read and found out a lot of information.
There was a manatee skeleton and a skeleton puzzle.
Since this is by the power plant there of course were things about electricity.
Power plant puzzle.
Information on transformers. The ones that bring electricity, not the robots. lol
The power plant.
Next up was the Tidal Walkway.
The boys got their information and away we went. :)
Mangroves
We saw a Shovel Nose Shark although I couldn't get a great pic.
We also saw stingray and lots of fish.
The stingray and fish were jumping up and out of the water. It was really neat.
On the way out we stopped to look at the butterflies.
It was a great day and I want to go back before the manatees leave the canal. The center is only open November-April.
First we had to get to the manatees. There were so many we couldn't keep count. As soon as we thought we had a good count another would pop up. There were well over 50 in the canal.
The regulars. We wouldn't have known if we seen these or not. There were just so many manatees out this day.
All of the little spots in the water are manatees. :)
The boys loved looking at the manatees and trying to count them.
Next stop was the Manatee Museum. I was pleasantly surprised with everything in there. I was thinking it was going to be a waste even walking in, but it was quite nice.
The boys played a manatee racing game.
We read and found out a lot of information.
There was a manatee skeleton and a skeleton puzzle.
Since this is by the power plant there of course were things about electricity.
Power plant puzzle.
Information on transformers. The ones that bring electricity, not the robots. lol
The power plant.
Next up was the Tidal Walkway.
The boys got their information and away we went. :)
Mangroves
We saw a Shovel Nose Shark although I couldn't get a great pic.
We also saw stingray and lots of fish.
The stingray and fish were jumping up and out of the water. It was really neat.
On the way out we stopped to look at the butterflies.
It was a great day and I want to go back before the manatees leave the canal. The center is only open November-April.
11 comments:
Looks like a lot of fun! Glad you got around to blogging! :D
Looks fun! I'm so jealous of your warm looking weather!
OMGsh how cool is that Manatee center. Looks like you had a fantastic field trip.
That is way cool! Amazing how many manatees there were in there.
Tisha, I so wish I could have gone! My mother would have loved it!
That just looks like tons of fun and so much information for your kids. Wow! Thanks for sharing.
That's awesome :)
You know I have never been and keep saying I would like to go sometime with the kiddos.
Never realized there was so much info there!!!
Thanks for sharing :-)
Nice! That place looks like tons of fun. My boys would love it!
I am "officially" so jealous that I have nothing to say! Okay, that is not true! That has got to be the funnest field trip I have seen blogged all winter!
What a fun trip! So much packed into one outing. I think being able to see all the creatures, esp. the manatees, is really fantastic. Wow! What a great opportunity for you and your kids.
That looks like an amazing place!!
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