During our recent visit to the Manatee Park in Ft. Meyers, Florida, I was reminded that sometimes humans help animals without planning to.  I’m not talking about rescues or programs, just plain old human activities that benefit animals without even trying. 

I’ll explain:  The power plant in Ft. Meyers was developed for humans. The plant discharges heated water into the canal that leads to the open ocean.  Somewhere in time, Manatees discovered that the warm water in the canals helped them survive if the water in the ocean became too cold for them to thrive during the winter. 

Granted, most of the time humans exploit animals, and it would be easy for me to list the many ways that humans impact animal life in a negative way…….but the story of the power plant and the Manatee Park in Ft. Meyers is the perfect example of animals using humans as a tool for survival.

Another example from my own experience, is from when Jim and I worked on cruise ships.  We noticed that birds were flying right outside our cabin window while we were out at sea.  Our rooms were very high at the top and at the bow (front) of the ship.  The birds would cruise along right beside us, looking down.  Then they would swoop down to the ocean and scoop up the flying fish that were skimming out of the ship’s way.  The birds were using the ship as a tool to catch fish.

That’s just two that come to mind.  Let me know if you have observed a way that animals have benefited from unintentional human activity…….