On Mon, 20 Jun 2016 14:25:33 -0700 (PDT), Tim
wrote:


back thousands of years, in spite of the fact that the power plant has
only been here 58 years and they could not survive in the winter
without it. All we really know is they may have migrated in and out
but it is clear they were never supposed to be here year round. I also
doubt this area ever supported the population we have now, even in the
summer.
-----

In other words, they found a good thing and moved in and convinced some folks they belonged there anyhow.

Manatee squatters? Lol

The real problem is the location of the power plant. If this was just
in some quiet backwater it would not be that big a deal but it is in
the Okeechobee water way, the only east/west route across Florida. It
is not shocking that they get hit by boats. They do not have any
respect for them and they will swim right at you.
Speed is not really an issue although that is what they use for
"protection" schemes. I have hit a couple and I was always goring
idle speed at the time. Actually one of them hit me. The silly SOB
smacked right into my beam as I was going by. When he spooked, he
jumped toward me, not away.
The other one swam up behind my boat, trying to drink out of the pee
stream on my motor when I was backing out of the slip. It was just
dumb luck that I hit him with the pontoon and not the prop. The
sombitch still would not move out of the way, even after I bumped him.