The Loch Ness Monster spent the winter in Key West a couple of years ago.

Actually, a lot of celebrities have wintered on the subtropical island where daytime temps in January and February generally exceed 70 degrees.

New York artist Cameron Gainer settles the Loch Ness Monster into its winter home in a Key West pond at the beginning of the 2008 Sculpture Key West exhibition. (Photo by Rob O'Neal/Florida Keys News Bureau)

Robert Frost, for one — the renowned poet abandoned New England for a cottage on Key West’s Caroline Street each winter from 1945 to 1960.

But until a couple of years ago, though Key Westers had seen plenty of snowbirds flocking to the southernmost city to escape the northern cold, they’d never seen anything like the Loch Ness Monster.

Nessie journeyed south on a boat trailer with New York artist Cameron Gainer, who was participating in the 2008 Sculpture Key West exhibition. The annual juried exhibition features work in many types of traditional and experimental media, displayed beside the island’s Civil War-era forts and public gardens — and in several other “surprise” locations around Key West.

Nessie, who turned out to be quite a surprise indeed, was destined for a winter home in a local pond at the entrance to Key West’s picturesque Old Town. But installing the 12-foot by 12.5-foot foam-and-fiberglass monster in the pond was no easy task.

Nessie isn't the only sculpted creature to visit Key West during the annual Sculpture Key West display. Here, artist Doug Makemson introduces "Henry," a nine-foot steel dog that starred in a previous exhibition. (Photo courtesy of Sculpture Key West)

Cameron was inspired to create Nessie by a 1934 photo that supposedly showed its humped back and long curving neck rising out of Scotland’s Loch Ness. To settle the monster in its warm-water winter home, he donned a wetsuit and jumped into the pond to guide the installation.

A Bobcat tractor, a small floating platform and a thick rope “leash” were required in the effort, which drew double-takes and laughter from passing drivers.

For the rest of that winter, much to the delight of absurdity-loving locals, Nessie startled unsuspecting passersby as they entered the historic Old Town district.

The 2010 Sculpture Key West exhibition doesn’t feature any legendary monsters — but that’s perfectly okay, because it includes plenty of other intriguing examples of artistry.

A sailboat is framed by the wood sculpture "Forest of Souls" on display at Sculpture Key West 2010. The wooden hoop by artist Jonathan Schork is composed of buttonwood, Brazilian pepper and Australian pine branches. (Photo by Rob O'Neal/Florida Keys News Bureau)

Thirty-some artists hailing from Paris, Berlin and 11 American states are showcasing their work in three venues at this year’s exhibition: the waterfront grounds of Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park, the tranquil and inspiring home of the Key West Garden Club at West Martello Tower, and the Key West Tropical Forest & Botanical Garden near the entrance to Key West.

Favorite sculptures include an 18-foot-tall wooden hoop-shaped memorial, a commentary on consumerism crafted out of recycled plastic bags, and an interactive “musical chairs” installation made (believe it or not) from discarded brass instruments that people can actually play.

At all three locations, the sculptures will remain on display through April 16.

Take a tip from a longtime Keys local who’s seen many previous Sculpture Key West exhibitions — Nessie might not be lurking around, but even so this is a “monstrously” good show. If you’re in the Keys, don’t miss it!

Topics: Animal Ambassadors, Arts, Festivals, Florida Keys, Key West, Keys Quirks, Local Color

Some people might dread a mundane workweek, ticking off the days on the calendar until their next vacation. But not Armando “Mandy” Rodriguez. The guiding spirit behind Marathon’s Dolphin Research Center, or DRC, Mandy calls his job a blessing and a gift — one that the Vietnam veteran says rescued him from deep post-war despair.

Mandy Rodriguez, the guiding spirit behind Dolphin Research Center, enjoys a quiet moment with a couple of good buddies. (Photos courtesy of DRC)

In 1984, Mandy and his then-wife Jayne Shannon-Rodriguez founded the nonprofit DRC after working as head trainer and manager of the research facility that previously existed on the property.

Now, more than 25 years later, both remain actively involved in DRC’s operation. Their underlying philosophies — to teach the world about marine mammals’ innate intelligence and problem-solving skills, as well as how to care for and protect them — are the principles that guide the facility.

With its protective environment for dolphins and sea lions, DRC draws national and international visitors to the Florida Keys. It’s also a center where people can increase their awareness of marine mammals and environmental conservation.

In addition, DRC is a great place to learn and work for young people pursuing careers in research and animal behaviors.

Under Mandy's watchful eye, dolphins Kibby, AJ and Tanner have some fun taking turns on a training platform.

Mandy’s connection to marine mammals, however, predates DRC. It began during his childhood in Cuba.

“I was taught to swim before I could walk, exposed to mammals at an early age,” said Mandy, who arrived in the United States at age 10. “I was an ocean brat.”

When he was 20, after fighting in the Vietnam War, Mandy worked at the Miami Seaquarium as “low man on the assistant trainer totem pole.” The experience left him unfulfilled and in search of a teaching institution.

He found it at the New England Aquarium in Boston, where he trained with harbor seals, sea lions and fur seals. Yet it was interaction with dolphins that ultimately captured his attention and became his passion.

A trio of "mellow fellows" share a swim in DRC's protected waters. The center has performed groundbreaking research on dolphin intelligence.

Mandy’s war experiences had left him edgy and suffering from persistent post-traumatic stress disorder. He credits the dolphins — their energy, behavioral responses, ability to evoke emotions and calm the soul — with helping him coexist better with fellow humans, including those who had harassed and persecuted him when he returned from Vietnam.

“The dolphins taught me to live life, accept life and to be … a mellow fellow,” said Mandy.

Now that he has spent decades with the gentle cetaceans, he admits to having a few favorites: Kibby, a resident of DRC for nearly 30 years, 21-year-old A.J. and his 7-year-old son Tanner, whose cognitive abilities earned him a brainiac reputation as the “jock who’s smart.”

The “four boys” like to play and romp together, with the dolphins gathering around for the kisses that Mandy generously doles out — all while maintaining an eye contact that demonstrates the trust between them.

“They taught me to have fun in life, to eat, play and make love,” said Mandy of the dolphins. “Anyone that goes wrong with that is nuts.”

Topics: Animal Ambassadors, Highlights, Keys Environment, Marathon, Profiles

(Editor’s Note: Larry Kahn, author of this week’s column, is the editor of the “Keynoter” newspaper and occasionally fishes off the Florida Keys.)

Why?

What gives you the right to tease me with your bait while I am offshore of the Florida Keys, minding my own business, feeding on a flying fish or two?

Guest blogger Larry "The Fish" and a pelagic pal share a face-to-face session pondering some big questions. (Photo by Andy Newman)

Who vested you with the right to troll with the sole aim of killing me so I can wind up on your grill, in your pan or deep inside your smoker, marinated with a nice touch of Key lime juice?

Who among you decided you could play God, reeling and reeling while I run and run until I can run no more?

Speaking for the fish, it is a bummer. And I can speak for my pelagic friends, because I live among them.

At least, once a year I do … during the annual Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing! seminar.

It’s called the no-yellin’ school of fishing for women, and includes intensive instruction on how to rig baits, tie knots, gaff fish and even dock a boat. It also showcases the proper technique to reel in a fish.

Portraying The Fish, Larry demonstrates finny fitness for Ladies, Let's Go Fishing students. (Photo courtesy of Ladies, Let's Go Fishing!)

Which is where I come in.

I am the tuna. The dolphin (i.e. mahi-mahi).

I am The Fish.

For the past two years, I’ve been put in a pool at the Holiday Isle Resort with a line attached to a belt around my waist.

It’s pretty simple. The women reel; I try to swim away from them. It teaches them not to allow slack line, to follow the fish as it moves in the water — and, ultimately, to wear out the fish.

Unfortunately for me, they learn well. And I learn what a fish goes through.

It starts out so innocently. Seminar founder Betty Bauman and her 60 students gather around the pool to practice the basics of reeling in a fish. While this is happening, they attach the line to my belt and I get in the water with flippers on.

Betty tries to reel me in. I swim to the other end of the pool, but not so easily. Swimming against her pressure is like being a salmon trying to swim upstream. Wait — they do that. I can’t.

The Ladies, Let's Go Fishing gang relaxes with the "catch of the day." (Photo courtesy of Ladies, Let's Go Fishing!)

After less than two minutes fighting that line, with 60 women watching and learning, I’m so worn out that I’m looking for a paramedic.

In just 10 minutes of being The Fish, I discover a newfound respect for the real fish that can fight for hours before being boated.

I am the lucky one that got away. To my finny friends less fortunate, I say only this: “Grill tastefully, my brothers. Grill tastefully.”

Topics: Animal Ambassadors, Florida Keys, Islamorada, Keys Quirks, Local Color, On the Water

Not long ago, Penn Alexander realized the balance of nature in his Old Town Key West neighborhood was definitely out of whack.

Armando Parra, left, formerly the official chicken catcher of Key West, shows an indigenous fowl to Penn Alexander and a lovely "chick." (Photo by Andy Newman/Florida Keys News Bureau)

One evening, when he was listening to a vintage Eagles CD in his hundred-year-old cottage, Penn glanced down at the plastic cat crate that housed a wounded Key West chicken he’d rescued from a marauding hawk. There on top of the crate snoozed his large gold tabby cat, clearly uninterested in the feathered inhabitant and what should have been their predator/prey relationship.

In Key West, however, most relationships involving chickens transcend traditional boundaries. The island’s indigenous poultry, probably descended from roosters bred generations ago for cockfights and hens kept for eggs, roams historic Old Town at will. Private cars and taxis stop to let chickens and their babies cross the road, visitors coo and cluck as they snap photos of the meandering fowl, and roosters can be heard crowing not just at dawn, but whenever they feel like it.

While most Key Westers accept the chickens as part of the egg-ccentric island they love — and some, like Penn, feed or shelter them — a few anti-poultry proponents claim the population is too noisy and growing too fast.

Joe Liszka, one of the Key Westers who hatched ChickenFest, appears at a city meeting with a feathered friend. (Photo by Andy Newman/Florida Keys News Bureau)

In fact, in 2004 city officials hired a chicken catcher to round up and relocate almost half of the city’s estimated 2,000 birds to a mainland farm. Armando Parra, a third-generation island resident, barber and amateur ornithologist, caught eight chickens in humane traps during his first day on the job — but his new career was thwarted by the efforts of poultry lovers, who freed trapped fowl at every opportunity.

The resultant commotion led to (I am not kidding here) a four-day festival that was quickly dubbed ChickenFest — hatched by some local event coordinators to give chicken lovers something to crow about.

Fowl fanciers flocked to participate, dressing in full-body yellow chicken suits and feathered headdresses, covering their noses with vinyl rooster beaks and donning red and yellow plush chicken-head caps.

“The Original Chickens,” the brainchild of a Key West accountant, cavort during the “Fowl Follies” costume competition that took place during ChickenFest Key West. (Photo by Mike Hollar/Florida Keys News Bureau)

The highlight was a Poultry in Motion Parade that featured 10-foot-tall dancing chickens, a Colonel Sanders look-alike, a flock of renegade roosters staging a “coop d’etat” against hapless humans, and a 12-foot “Chicken Caesar” — a toga-wearing rooster reclining on a chariot-drawn chaise and waving a regal wing to parade spectators. In the face of that kind of support, the poultry population’s “hard-boiled” detractors didn’t stand a chance.

Today, although ChickenFest is no longer held, chickens rule the roost in Key West. The island’s hens and roosters have become the subject of oil paintings and watercolors, giant sculptures in neighborhood parks and locally published children’s books.

If you’re seeking chicken companionship during a visit to the island, stop by Key West’s funky Blue Heaven, a renowned eatery whose fans include famed singer/songwriter Jimmy Buffett.

Blue Heaven’s  “breakfast with the roosters,” served in an outdoor courtyard where resident hens and chicks wander freely, features items ranging from lobster and shrimp benedicts to sinfully good homemade pancakes and banana bread.

Or, if you know Penn Alexander, just head over to his place. The little hen he rescued, now named Henrietta, has become a pet whose daily treat is a smidgen of cat food filched from Penn’s orange tabby.

The cat doesn’t seem to mind a bit.

Topics: Animal Ambassadors, Events, Festivals, Key West, Keys Quirks, Local Color

“Balloon Dog” has landed at Key West’s Fantasy Fest 10-day masking and costuming festival, offering a zany canine counterpoint to the alleged “Balloon Boy” hoax that recently drew worldwide attention.

Jim Brooks checks the so-called weather balloon affixed to his "Balloon Dog," Brutus, at Key West's Fantasy Fest Pet Masquerade. (Photos by Rob O'Neal, Florida Keys News Bureau)

The appearance of “Balloon Dog,” however, was the real thing. Lower Keys resident Jim Brooks attached a pseudo weather balloon to a harness worn by his English bulldog, Brutus, to compete in the Fantasy Fest Pet Masquerade. His inspiration, of course, was the much-publicized saga of the Colorado boy supposedly carried away by a homemade weather balloon that took off after he climbed inside it.

“I imagined, over a couple of beverages, what would happen if my dog did that,” said Jim.

Perhaps fortunately for his credibility, Jim didn’t specify the type of beverage that led to his imaginings. He did, however, outline some of the logistical challenges he faced in creating the costume.

According to Jim, he originally envisioned Brutus actually floating in midair beneath a helium balloon — but Internet research revealed that lifting the 65-pound dog would necessitate a surprisingly large supply of helium.

“It was going to require a 21-foot-diameter weather balloon, and the National Weather Service wouldn’t let me borrow one,” Jim said.

It's hard to tell who looks more alien here -- but clearly, this duo dropped in from its home planet to participate in the Pet Masquerade.

Jim and “Balloon Dog” weren’t the only offbeat competitors that paraded across the Pet Masquerade stage. The contest for “party animals” drew more than 80 entries starring costumed dogs, cats, tropical birds and unusual pets such as two African tortoises dressed as members of the fictional “Addams Family.” (Honestly, I’m not making this up. The tortoises, whose names are Topsy and Toast, and their two human companions won — and deserved — the masquerade’s grand prize.)

Other crowd favorites included a tiny canine dressed as a popular sandwich chain’s trademark “$5 foot-long,” a “peacock dog” that shook its exotic tail feathers at spectators, and a man who donned blue and yellow feather boas to impersonate the blue-and-gold macaw he carried.

Which one is the REAL blue-and-gold macaw? Jim Cozzi and his bird Bob sport lookalike blue and yellow feathers.

An entry dubbed “Mary Had a Little Lamb” featured a woman named Mary, who wore a sexy shepherdess dress, leading two big dogs costumed as lambs. During her stint onstage, Mary said she thought wearing the costumes was making her dogs feel (yes, you know what’s coming) a little sheepish.

How creative and quirky were this year’s Pet Masquerade competitors? Well, the bearded dragon that “rode” around the stage perched on a self-propelled toy Harley did NOT win the top prize for being the most exotic entry.

Actually, neither did “Balloon Dog.” But that’s okay, because he was the darling of the film crews shooting the animal antics. Like the Colorado family that inspired his costume, Brutus is pretty sure to show up on television screens all across America.

Topics: Animal Ambassadors, Events, Festivals, Highlights, Key West, Keys Quirks, Local Color

It’s not easy to costume a cat. Particularly when the cat is a 20-pound male Norwegian Forest Cat named Alex, who’s very conscious of his dignity, and the costume is a tasteful silk dress and a rope of pearls.

Clearly, Alex is not yet comfortable in his Pet Masquerade attire.

Getting him used to his finery is likely to be a lengthy process involving hisses, claws and curses (both human and feline), but I’m determined to prevail. And I’m not alone in this odd purr-suit.

All over the Florida Keys, otherwise sane people are constructing costumes for their cats, dogs, ferrets, potbellied pigs, ducks and heaven knows what other domestic species. The people are absolutely serious about this enterprise, though most of the animals are as uneasy as Alex.

What’s behind this strange phenomenon? A costume competition for critters, known as the WKEYZ Pet Masquerade and Parade, which is a highlight of Key West’s 10-day Fantasy Fest masking and costuming celebration that’s held each October.

The animal antics take place on an oceanfront stage at Key West’s historic Casa Marina Resort & Beach Club. And believe me, the fur really flies when several dozen costumed pets and their people strut their stuff in front of a few thousand enthusiastic spectators.

Past Pet Masquerade entries have ranged from the simple to the extraordinarily intricate ... like this one involving a very patient dog. (Photo by Andy Newman/Florida Keys News Bureau)

Entries usually range from simple pet-and-person duos to multi-member animal-and-human ensembles attempting to perform musical numbers. A panel of bemused judges awards prizes in categories including most exotic attire and pet-owner look-alikes.

Among the more bizarre past entries have been a flock of giant “chicken people” who cavorted onstage with a dog named Weasel to the strains of the “Super Chicken” cartoon theme song, a duck lounging in a bathtub on wheels, a team of miniature dachshunds pulling a miniature covered wagon, a parakeet riding in a tiny remote-controlled car, and a musical salute to Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Birds” featuring a blonde-wigged Borzoi hound costumed as “Birds” actress Tippi Hedren.

The Borzoi was a regular Pet Masquerade contender whose human companion, Madeleine Burnside, delighted in staging complex song-and-dance routines featuring the dog and a multi-person entourage.

One year, Key West mortgage banker David Koontz was a member of that entourage. For reasons known only to Madeleine, the costume she chose for him included a large cutlass and purple body paint applied liberally to his skin and hair.

Kelsey Morris and her duck Prissy shared "top billing" in a past Pet Masquerade. (Photo by Andy Newman/Florida Keys News Bureau)

Unfortunately, she neglected to tell him the body paint didn’t wash off very well. The day after Pet Masquerade, David flew to New York City to attend a high-level national mortgage bankers’ conference — where he spent most of his time explaining why his skin and hair had a distinct purple hue.

With 2009’s Pet Masquerade set for Oct. 28, Florida Keys pet lovers are stitching sequins and feathers onto costumes, reluctant animals are fleeing from fittings, and David Koontz is avoiding both body paint and Borzois.

As for me, I’m still trying to convince Alex the Norwegian Forest Cat that he looks terrific in a silk dress and pearls.

Topics: Animal Ambassadors, Events, Festivals, Highlights, Key West, Keys Quirks, Local Color

It’s called the No Name Pub, and it bills itself as the oldest pub in Florida. It might also be the hardest to find — the quirky eatery lies off U.S. Highway 1 in the Lower Florida Keys, down a winding road and over a humpbacked bridge in an individualistic settlement known as No Name Key.

You have to venture off the proverbial beaten path to find the No Name Pub, but the experience is well worth it. (Photo courtesy of the No Name Pub)

This out-of-the-way location doesn’t keep people from discovering the local landmark — or falling in love with its historic Florida Keys charm, world-class pizza and ramshackle décor that includes interior walls papered with dollar bills.

What is now the pub first opened as a general store and bait and tackle shop in 1931. In 1936, the owners began serving food; in the late 1930s they opened a brothel in an upstairs storage room.

The restaurant proved more popular than the brothel (no doubt a surprise to certain ladies eager to earn extra money!). The latter faded away, while the pub started attracting an ever-larger following.

Serious enjoyment and ramshackle decor characterize the quirky No Name Pub. (Photo courtesy of the No Name Pub)

Amenities in subsequent years included a honky-tonk atmosphere and amusements ranging from pool to less savory games of chance — some reputedly run by the local sheriff.

The pub’s famous pizza was born in 1960, prepared according to a recipe imported by two Italian cooks. It proved to be such an enduring draw that today it’s modestly promoted as “the best pizza in the known universe.”

You can choose traditional varieties or gourmet delights like a Keys shrimp pizza (a must-have treat — the combination of bubbly, slightly salty cheese and the Keys’ own sweet pink shrimp is impossible to resist).

The pub's individualistic character is exemplified by its funky casual signs -- like the ones pictured here. (Photo courtesy of the No Name Pub)

As the pub’s nearly 70 years of popularity prove, when great food and laidback Keys flavor come together, “no name” is no barrier to success.

The place itself may be hard to find, but its website is easy. Visit www.nonamepub.com for a glimpse of the landmark’s offbeat character, historic photos, menu highlights and a more-or-less exact address (actually, you find it by turning off U.S. Highway 1 at mile marker 30.5 bayside and then following the winding road … but resign yourself to the inevitability of getting lost at least once).

AND WHILE YOU’RE LOST … EXPLORE THESE!

Big-eyed and shy, Key deer can be spotted throughout the Lower Keys widlife refuge created to protect them. (Photo courtesy of Andy Newman, Florida Keys News Bureau)

NATIONAL KEY DEER REFUGE, down Key Deer Boulevard off U.S. 1 at mile marker 30.5 bayside. At first, you might wonder what all the fuss is about. Then you see one — a big-eyed Key deer, no taller than a good-sized Doberman, standing at the roadside in an instant of arrested motion before it scampers away — and you’re hooked on the tiny critters. The best times to spot them are early morning and dusk, and they wander freely in the refuge. The refuge has an informative visitors’ center located in Big Pine Key’s Winn Dixie Shopping Center.

THE BLUE HOLE, within the Key Deer Refuge down Key Deer Boulevard off U.S. 1 at mile marker 30.5 bayside. This was originally an old rock quarry used in the construction of the Overseas Railroad that connected the Keys to mainland Florida (and to each other) in the early 1900s. Today it’s a freshwater habitat for alligators and wading birds. Spend a few minutes at this secluded oasis, before or after your pizza, and you’ll swear you’ve been transported back in time to the Keys’ early days.

Topics: Animal Ambassadors, Big Pine Key & Lower Keys, Florida Keys, Food, Highlights, Keys Environment, Keys History, Keys Quirks, Local Color, Restaurant Picks

Obama celebrated Independence Day by plunging into the Atlantic Ocean off the Florida Keys as about 100 people applauded and shouted, “Go, Obama!”

(From left to right) Theo Glorie, Ryan Butts, Tom Favelli and Richie Moretti say their farewells to "Obama" before setting the loggerhead free. (Photo by Rob O'Neal/Florida Keys News Bureau)

They weren’t cheering the American president’s swimming skill, however, but that of a 215-pound loggerhead sea turtle dubbed “Obama” — who was released to freedom July 4 after recuperating for five and a half months at Marathon’s internationally renowned Turtle Hospital.

“Obama” was rescued off the Keys on Jan. 19, the day before Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th president of the United States.

Key West resident Tom Favelli was out in his 18-foot boat with a friend, 15-year-old Gerald Hernandez, when they spotted the turtle in trouble about a quarter-mile offshore. They called local authorities, who put them in touch with The Turtle Hospital.

“The reason we contacted the authorities was the fact that the turtle was floating on the surface and it was unable to submerge itself,” Tom said.

With coaching from Turtle Hospital administrator Ryan Butts, Tom and Gerald brought the turtle ashore and turned it over to hospital staff for care — after giving it a presidential name.

“We named the turtle ‘Obama’ because we found it around inauguration time,” Tom said.

"Obama" is just one of the loggerheads successfully rehabilitated and released by The Turtle Hospital. Here at right, Gov. Charlie Crist of Florida helps release a turtle near the Seven Mile Bridge in the Middle Keys. (Photo by Bob Care/Florida Keys News Bureau)

Medical tests revealed that the turtle, estimated to be 50 or 60 years old, was suffering from a severe intestinal impaction that caused a body cavity infection. The hospital staff went into high gear and began appropriate treatment. 

“Obama” couldn’t have been in better hands. The Turtle Hospital (www.turtlehospital.org), located in Marathon in the Middle Keys, is the only facility of its kind in the world. Since 1986, hospital founder Richie Moretti and his associates have been treating injured sea turtles and, whenever possible, returning them to the wild. The hospital’s other goals include working toward environmental legislation to make beaches and oceans safer and cleaner for sea turtles.

After five and a half months of recuperation, “Obama” received a clean bill of health. On the morning of July 4, the turtle was transported back to the beach where Tom and Gerald originally brought it to shore.

“The turtle came in at a historic moment and was named after the new president, so we thought it was appropriate to release ‘Obama’ to freedom on America’s Independence Day,” Ryan said.

(FYI, “Obama” traveled comfortably in the hospital’s official Turtle Ambulance — which might not be as fancy as Air Force One, but is pretty impressive nevertheless.)

After a final pat from Ryan Butts, "Obama" heads for home in the waters off the Florida Keys. (Photo by Rob O'Neal/Florida Keys News Bureau)

“When we opened up the back doors of our hospital ambulance and ‘Obama’ the sea turtle smelled that ocean air, that turtle was so excited about getting out to the ocean,” said Ryan.

Carefully Ryan, Richie Moretti, Tom and volunteer Theo Glorie carried “Obama” down the beach between two lines of kids and adults who had gathered to watch the historic release.

When they put “Obama” down near the ocean’s edge, it was abundantly clear that the turtle was healthy and ready for freedom. With single-minded determination and a burst of speed, it headed for the water and home.

“We got the turtle down on the sand and it took off,” Ryan said. “It was so excited and swam away with all the energy it had.”

Cheers erupted from the crowd, and a few people wiped away unexpected tears, as “Obama” disappeared into the blue Atlantic.

Farewell, Turtle-in-Chief … and fare well. 

Topics: Animal Ambassadors, Florida Keys, Highlights, Keys Environment, Local Color, Marathon

For some 30 years, legendary divemaster Captain Spencer Slate has befriended, nurtured and fed slithery sea creatures at coral reefs off Key Largo in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.

There’s Oscar, Psycho, Rusty and Flash from the barracuda family. Then, there are Melba, Sundance and Slime from the moray family. And the captain would never want to forget about Shreader, who has left his mark on Slate.

Captain Spencer Slate has become a legend in the Florida Keys and a celebrity in both diving and non-diving circles. (Photo by Frazier Nevins)

It’s because of his regular “visits” with these and other marine creatures that Captain Slate has become a legend in the Florida Keys and a well-known celebrity in both diving and non-diving circles.

Slate developed his passion for his extraordinary “friends” under the tutelage of Steve Klem, who was a pioneer dive operator in Key Largo in the mid-1950s.

“He was a wonderful guy who loved the creatures and just wanted to introduce them to the people,” said Slate. “I used to go watch him do the feeding and we became best friends.”

Slate took over feeding Klem’s creatures in 1978 — and today offers Creature Feature dive excursions from his Atlantis Dive Center in Key Largo. Every Friday and Sunday at 8 a.m., Slate gives dive visitors an up-close and personal introduction to many of his underwater pals.

Divers can even “hug” a moray eel and tickle its tummy. Snorkelers also can enjoy the show and interact with fish brought closer to the surface by staff from the sandy bottom 25 to 30 feet below.

Sundance, an affectionate moray eel, is one of Captain Spencer Slate’s special underwater buddies — as their obvious affection demonstrates. (Photo by Stephen Frink)

One Creature Feature “regular” is a gentle giant nicknamed Bruiser — a goliath grouper with spotted skin and a rounded body that weighs about 350 pounds. From November to May, Bruiser meanders around the reef hiding under rocks. But for Slate and his excursion participants, Bruiser emerges with a fishy smile to be hand-fed by new friends.

Divers also can watch Slate feed Sundance, the moray eel named for the way she moves.

“She’s real gentle — very sweet,” Slate said.

One of the excursion’s highlights demonstrates the trust between Slate and his undersea friends. Slate holds bait clenched in his teeth, and a silver bullet-like barracuda named Lightning strikes just centimeters from his dive mask to take it.

“The thrill is introducing new divers to these animals,” said Slate. “We want divers to be educated so they don’t get hurt and they don’t hurt these amazing creatures.” 

Want to know more about the captain and his unusual underwater buddies? Visit www.captainslate.com.

Topics: Animal Ambassadors, Florida Keys, Key Largo, Keys Quirks, Local Color, On the Water

I’m sure this is accidental.

But how strange is it that on Sunday, a sick loggerhead sea turtle seemingly found its own way to the doctor, almost landing on the doorstep of the Turtle Hospital in the Florida Keys?

Ryan Butts examines the loggerhead turtle that swam to the hospital on its own.

Sunday morning, staff members of the Turtle Hospital, which is based in Marathon, saw the 80-pound turtle swimming near a dock, just 20 feet away from the turtle rehabilitation pools. At first they didn’t think too much about it, but the turtle hung around and wouldn’t leave.

Later in the day, Turtle Hospital administrator Ryan Butts decided to take a closer look and determined the reptile was not well. So he and other staff members rescued it to examine and treat it.

“He has a bacterial infection in his bloodstream,” Ryan told me earlier today. “He’s very very thin, very weak and very emaciated,” he said. “He just needs TLC.”

Ryan said that blood drawn from the teenage turtle has been sent to a laboratory for further diagnosis and, in the meantime, the reptile is being administered antibiotics and fluids.

“We’ve went out and rescued several thousand turtles over the past 25 years, but this is the first time a turtle has ever tracked us down and showed up at our doorstep waiting to be admitted to the Turtle Hospital,” Ryan said.

One thing about the Keys’ Turtle Hospital, the only licensed veterinary facility in the world that solely treats sea turtles, is that no turtle ever gets turned away. Even if it doesn’t have health insurance <G>.

Topics: Animal Ambassadors, Florida Keys, Keys Environment, Keys Quirks, Marathon, On the Water