Attribute to L. Neil Smith’s The Libertarian Enterprise

This is a follow up to the article published last summer that focused more on the bad aspects of the herptile hobby: https://ncc-1776.org/tle2018/tle986-20180819-03.html, namely the threat posed by the freedom crushing agenda of the animal rights movement and radical environmentalism that more often than not are the incubator of regulatory overreach threatening to crush freedom and quality of life in general. Yet even as the shadow of the proposed Green New Deal that entails the draconian command economy that I've spent a lifetime dreading threatens my future plans—I find myself contemplating a bold revival to put all other bold revivals to shame. It is the restoration of the Florida Room that is part of an overall restoration of some of my best hobby related accomplishments mentioned in previous contributions to this journal.

Accomplishments that were really awesome in their heyday but have sadly been allowed to suffer the effects of time and neglect and disorganization. Like many a great naval fleet that was great in its time but falls into disrepair as priorities and fortunes of nations change. Cannot help but recall a passage from L.E. Modesitt's “Adiamante” (a SF work popular at the time) which said just that!

And that was pretty much what happened to the Florida Room that began as a stopgap measure for the greenhouse that never got built until many years after I gave up on it and transitioned to other things.

The first time around my decisions were made in haste—coming back home with all the plants I accumulated over the past couple years and no greenhouse to move onto. I started out with a block platform for the turtle table and the two Rubbermaids and some fluorescent shop lights to keep the plants alive while I was in the process of moving them home and the turts were upstairs in plastic crates and cement tray enclosures while the big grow lights were on order. And the Cichlasoma nicarauguense and managuense that lived in the 55 at Andrews ended up dying in the chilly water of the second tub that later became the habitat for the striped muds and blue feeder Platies.

Then it all came together after the lights arrived to brighten up and heat the room to a comfortably warm tropical paradise. The 55 became a vivarium for Redeyed Tree Frogs and Glass Frogs and the turts moved in. A little later I commissioned Big Bob to build the wooden platform to replace most of the blocks.

And it was pretty good for a while until the rats got in and started shredding plants. And my interest shifted back to the ponds and other things outdoors. The Turtle Table got mothballed for a very long time and I downsized my turtle collection parting with most of the tropical species and the Florida Room became a fish room. The Frog Tank became an aquarium again for native fishes and the tubs got reconfigured for a while to provide a pretty decent indoor accommodation for Spotted Turtles. That was where my sump crate system evolved that later was repurposed to service setups for the Japanese Pond Turtles and is being currently refined and upgraded to serve the tub for the restored Turtle Table that was taken out of mothballs again and refined also this winter—the block being replaced by actual wooden legs. This involved a helluva lot of tinkering to get it right again. Multiple tries with different combinations of various thicknesses of concrete blocks and three sets of legs I finally did get it right.

As of Friday this week I have fully functional tub system running with a potted Peace Lily in the water and a bag of expendable feeder fish—Rosy Reds—a strain of the common Fathead Minnow of bait shop fame that I put in to help get the biofiltration system well colonized with beneficial bacteria before transitioning to a more choice species like wild type Blue Moon Platies or Green Swordtails (one or the other because they will hybridize and end up ugly mutts like I got before when the Swords jumped into the tub with the Platies) and Florida Flags and Liberty Molles. Later as I get braver I'll try adding one of the easier to keep Mexican Goodeids—those are of a group of unusual live bearing fish many of which are very rare or even extinct in the wild.

I also have two hatchling Guererro Wood Turtles on order which will be coming in a few weeks. The nominate subspecies of Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima that I affectionately refer to as “Psquares” that I had before. A single specimen I bought from Glades Herp when Mike and I were herping in south Florida in the spring of 1993. Unfortunately I was never able to find a suitable mate of the same type before it died around the year 2000—right about the time I had finally gotten serious about building the greenhouse again. Now many years later I've got a second chance and thistime around I'm already off to a good start. Hoping to succeed with this one and also the Furrowed—or Belize Wood Turtle—Rhinoclemmys areolata that I also kept on the table along with the P2 and three of the R.p. incisa or Honduran subspecies of pulcherrima that I ended up getting into also. This time around I'm going to be more narrow in focus because I can only keep a small flock of maybe a half dozen or so adult Rhinoclemmys on a 4x4 foot table and even if I build them an outdoor enclosure or keep them in the greenhouse for the summer—these are tropical turtles that must be kept warm and fully active in winter—unlike the other North American and temperate Eurasian species that have the option of hibernating.

I'm currently at hiatus right now contemplating my next step. Most likely a plexiglas wall for the front edge of the table to keep the occupants contained. The other two sides that butt against the wall can use a less aesthetically pleasing option and the edge that borders the tub needs a ramp. Then comes the 42-inch x 12-inch; hydroponic grow trays that will be raised on bricks or some other form of supports against the walls that will double as a growing area for plants and an overhanging ledge for the turts to shelter under much like the shelf I have over the turtle run in the greenhouse. And continue to build upward with a living wall system and artificial trees to support bromeliads, orchids and other epiphytic plants from there.

There is also the matter of lighting. Right now it is very much like back in the beginning with a single shop light (LED of course). I'm brainstorming multiple options for replacing the old 400 Watt Halide / Sodium light duo with some kind of LED. There are a lot of options and I'm taking my time to figure out the best one for my application.

And such is often the life of a reptile or other hobbyist dealing in live goods and forever aspiring toward excellence. Trying to improve the husbandry and wellbeing of the animals while reducing the cost and effort of maintenance while maximizing personal enjoyment. And speaking of—I'm keeping this one shorter than most of my previous installments because I'd like to be able to enjoy the first 70 degree day in a good while. I've got a late run of a winter flower show and the remaining turtles are waking up!

After a long winter that fortunately had no major disasters for which I am thankful.

And there is also the matter of the Turtle Table that I'm glad I didn't at some point decide to burn or give it away like I thought about doing to free up space through the years. That would be a regrettable decision now for both sentimental as well as practical reasons. It's the only thing I have left that was made by Big Bob and it would require additional money, time and effort to replace. Also glad I didn't act on impulse to cut the surface area down to free up space for more of the other things I'd like to have in the Florida Room.

Some compromises are not worth the loss of value. That's the same for life, liberty and pursuit of happiness in general.

I'm going to have to do another follow up when the project is complete. But now I have another potential “Perfect Day” to pursue before its gone.