Returning to Longboat Key, Florida, to check on our condo, I brought my oldest grandson with me; we arrived on the first day of the Atlantic Hurricane Season. Nevertheless, we have enjoyed relatively pleasant (though humid) conditions except for one torrential downpour that knocked out our internet for the past two days.
A number of severe storms have skirted our immediate area and we have enjoyed watching them develop and dissipate. The ingredients are certainly present for hurricanes should they form in the Gulf or arrive from the Caribbean. The Gulf of Mexico waters are already bathtub warm.
Of course, our focus has also been on the unique wildlife of this region, almost all new to my grandson. Sea turtle nests have been roped-off along the beaches, shorebirds scurry across the sand and a large variety of waders and sea birds scour the bay and mangroves behind our condo; a large number of magnificent frigate birds and several manatees have been special observations. Indeed, it is a natural paradise, at least until the storms arrive.
