Where we went - from Plant City to the project sites
A super scooper-dooper. This machine grabs about 50 cubic yards of ore-bearing sand.
A section of the mine
Another view
We walked to the big scooper-dooper and took some photos - one of me of course
The boom of the scooper-dooper - with the bucket at the base
Another view of the boom
ANother section of the mine with some ground water
The cockpit where the pilot operates the machine
The bucket
A view of the entire machine
This is recently reclaimed section of the mined property
This is a more mature section of reclaimed property - lake and wetlands
With birds flying around
Lots of birds and spiders and plants and natural stuff
Looking in a different direction
Landing
Reflections of a bird
Walking
Watching
flying
Flying again - look how straight the legs are - perfect form for a bird
A small damselfly - often seen by members of the Flickr group: Macro Maniacs of Singapore
Another view
Dee and her team transplant gopher turtles - and endangered species. Here is the burrow of a gopher turtle
Here is a different burrow
The road to somewhere
Another reclaimed section of mined property - more wetlands
I think these are dandelion-like buds
Another view of the restored wet lands
Another view - and in the distance is the phosphate processing plant.
Here is another view of the reclaimed area with the processing plant in the background. The plant is the world's largest phosphate processing plant - and it is huge
About to bloom
A green dragonfly, Eastern Pondhawk, Erythemis simplicicollis
On a different platform
From the top
A close viwe - the little green things around the head are like emeralds
Probably a black Mason Wasp, Monobia quadridens
Reflections on a black Mason wasp: Monobia quadridens
A giant tinker toy structure - the world's largest phosphate processing plant
A processing tank where stuff is added to control the settling rate of the phosphate
A conveyor and the end product - a huge mound of raw phosphate. The size of this pile illustrates the current world recession and lack of demand for phosphate products (fertilizer etc).
Another view of the phosphate moutain
Loading a small amount of phosphate
The road to the top of the phosphate mountain
A platform - I think for dumping phospate onto the mountain
The processing plant
Another view
Another reclaimed area - and a white egret?
Another view of the wetlands
The diesel engine used to move train loads of phosphate
Another wetland area
A little flower
A cattle farm from reclaimed mined property
Here live a strange owl that lives in the ground - a burrowing owl
The Burrowing owl's home
A fuzzy view of a burrowing owl
Three donkeys
Our team - Dee, Grant and Jimmy
C. Frank Starmer