SEPTEMBER 2015 NEWS LETTER
Greetings from your friends and Captains here at Bird’s Underwater!
Owners and Captains Bill “Bird” and Diane Oestreich
Captains Marty Senetra, Steve Browning, Jeff Sandmann, Cody Cummins, Mike Miliski, and Rick Tuten
Hi, everybody! Maybe we don’t put out enough newsletters, but that’s because we only want to share information that matters to you, our customers and followers. We want you to look forward to what we have to say, just like we look forward to seeing all of you. We don’t want our posts to be self serving advertisements.
NEW REGULATIONS FOR THREE SISTERS SPRINGS:
We’ve received a lot of inquiries about the new US Fish and wildlife regulations pertaining to Three Sisters Springs access so now’s the time to address them. First, know that nothing is set in stone. There can and probably will be changes that will drastically limit the numbers of people who can swim in the headsprings. These proposed rules are planned to be in effect from November 15th to March 31st. Keep in mind, whatever changes come to pass it will only affect what happens inside the actual spring, not outside of it, so your normal manatee tour isn’t going to be affected very much at all. More often than not there are no manatees inside, only outside, anyway. And nothing has changed for the other springs everyone loves so much.
2015/16 MANATEE SEASON IS GEARING UP:
The El Nino we’re getting this winter will bring low temperatures and LOTS of manatee. We have higher numbers of manatee in Citrus County almost every year. In February of this year USFWS counted 797 manatees here in Citrus, making a new record by a whopping 140 manatees (the old record being 657)!
The popularity of manatee snorkeling trips is still increasing. New regulations may reduce the number of people we can accommodate on trips, so I’d suggest booking early to assure the getting the days and times you’d like.
SCALLOP SEASON IS RUNNING FOR NEARLY ANOTHER MONTH:
We’re taking more people than ever out this year! Scallops are plentiful and nice and big. It’s really a fun day for the family and something a little different. Call us at 352.563.2763 and ask us to check the tides for the best days to go. You can still get your limit if you schedule your scallop trip on a day with low tides while you’re going to be out there. If you can’t schedule then, it’s still a load of fun. September 24th is the last day so book your trip soon.
If you have not seen our new website, please check it out. We recently posted a video entitled HOW YOU CAN HELP, in which we share some awesome drone footage shot by Karl Oestreich, and an interview with conservationist and explorer Jill Heinreth www.intotheplanet.com The video shares what we believe to be the biggest problem manatees face in Crystal River, and what you can do to help. Our new site also has great links to our local dive sites.
