‘This is a really good day’: 12 rescued, rehabbed manatees released at Florida's Blue Spring State Park
Ferret, an orphaned calf rescued in Broward County and rehabilitated at the Miami Seaquarium, gets a last checkup before release. - Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/Orlando Sentinel/TNS

ORLANDO, Fla. — Blue Spring in Volusia County is a popular place to see manatees but there’s never been an event like Monday, when manatee after manatee was unloaded from trucks and set free after a long stay in recovery and rehabilitation. A dozen from early morning to early afternoon were given final measurements and last health checks, equipped with GPS location transmitters and photographed for scientific purposes – and just for the joy of it. The animals had gotten a lot of hands-on care from a lot of caretakers in many states and several aquariums. While a few dozen lucky visitors at Blu...