From Dolphins To Manatees Milford's Going Tropical

There certainly has been much unusual activity in the waters these days, especially when it comes to our aquatic wildlife. Over the summer boaters were reporting Bottle Nose Dolphins in the Long Island Sound, and in the local papers over the last few days a Manatee.

These most unusual creatures really get the people's attention when they show up here in the Northeast because we usually do not see those kinds of animals everyday.

The first thing that comes to most peoples mind is "what in the world are Dolphins and Manatees doing in Milford?" This certainly was my first thought and I decided to do some investigating over the last few days to see what the experts thought of our new guests.

Thought the best place to start would be to ask my father a Veterinarian at the Westport Animal Hospital, and he gave me the same answer I got on the Internet.

"In the winter, usually November through March, manatees are concentrated primarily in Florida. Manatees are susceptible to cold-related disease, and in the winter, gather near warm water sources such as natural springs or warm water effluents of power plants. Water temperatures below 68 degrees usually cause manatees to move into these warm water refuge areas. Individual manatees often return to the same wintering areas year after year. In the summer months, manatees are much more widely distributed and can be found as far west as Alabama and Louisiana and as far north as Virginia and the Carolina's.

The most likely cause of their Northbound migration beyond the Carolina's is that water conditions may be warm enough to keep them interested in swimming North. Another possibility could be climate change, pursuit of food sources, or warmer sea water. However, without doing more studies, such as changes in their Southern habitat, it is also possible pollution pushed some of them North and that may be worth investigating."

This is currently a point of interest at the Bridgeport Regional Aquaculture School, and marine biologist's associated with the Maritime center indicated that they have no firm conclusions and are working to understand this very phenomenon but in the past have recovered Seals from the Long Island Sound, also an unusual sighting.

For those of you who may not know a Manatee is an endangered species, and boaters usually severely injure them by accident. They are also known as Sea Cows and can be ten feet long and weigh in excess of 1,000 Pounds. They are also very docile and slow moving so boaters should use caution when entering areas of warm water as that is where they would most likely be. Come Winter the manatees are expected to have gone South, or they may have to be found and relocated to save them from freezing.

The video below is the local news cast.

Magnet School is a Great Opportunity for Milford Children

Last night I attended a meeting where John J. Curtis the Director of the Bridgeport Regional Vocational Aquaculture School addressed students from Fairfield and New Haven County. The scope of this meeting was a public open house to discuss the schools programs, and opportunities afforded children of public schools.

Many local schools have information available to students who wish to attend this program as integrated into their regular schooling. The Aqua Culture school will accept any student applying now from 8Th grade on. Information on enrolling your child can be obtained by contacting the school at (203) 337-0168.

The school is located right at Captains Cove in Bridgeport, and is building a very impressive national and international position in educational opportunity. I found the school to be technologically impressive with scores of computers used to teach children Computer Automated design of boats, and related parts. They offer mechanical courses on outboard boat engine repair and service, as well all farming of marine life such as fish and lobsters.

The students also have a full pathology lab where they can study adverse environmental health effects of animals that may have died or got sick from farming or environmental problems. The advanced labs are fully equipped with every type of scientific apparatus a child could need. Some of these include gas, microwave and light spectroscopy devices all of which are used to determine chemical composition of materials.

The school also has a 57 foot yacht to navigate around the Long Island Sound as part of scientific and exploratory adventures. This school provides ECE or early college experiences of which can be used for university credit. The school operates in conjunction with major universities in CT and beyond and has college professors who teach many of the accredited courses. The school also just recieved new grant money to complete a major expansion in the coming years.

This entire experience was a very positive and as such I highly recommend this school to parents who have qualifying children.

Harborside Middle School Sent Into Lockdown

Earlier today news arrived that Harborside Middle school was sent into lock down. Students there indicated to me that they heard an announcement over the loudspeaker calling for a "Code White" of which indicates a security condition. A similar lock down occurred at Simon Lake school not even three weeks ago.

At approximately 3:30 today I contacted the Milford Police Department and the officer on duty declined to comment, but did refer me to a community office. That office is expected to release an official press release. For now this blog is only going to report the information provided by persons on school premises. Students and teachers indicated that they believed the school was called into lock down for the safety of the students. Some students were scared, and indicated that police cars were buzzing the school. Some students indicated that they felt the school was ill prepared for a lock down and some teachers did not draw their blinds and lock their doors as required. Some teachers were unsure as to what a "code white" even was.

The story on the street is that a local downtown bank was robbed and the police were concerned for school safety as they were in pursuit of a robbery suspect. The entire incident resulted in nothing more than a big scare. The students and school were eventually called off lock down and the local Milford Police Department indicated the situation was "under control."

Children were also sent home with a letter this afternoon indicating the lock down condition, but the letters offered no explanation as to the events resulting in the school scare. For now we will be waiting for the official press release of which will be due out shortly.