Friday's Afternoon Update

What you need to know about Florida today

| 1/6/2017

SeaWorld's iconic killer whale has died

Tilikum, the SeaWorld killer whale who inspired an anti-captivity documentary after killing an Orlando trainer, died today. Acquired by SeaWorld in 1992, Tilikum helped SeaWorld grow its captive orca collection by fathering more than a dozen offspring. But Tilikum also triggered a downward spiral for SeaWorld after he killed trainer Dawn Brancheau in 2010. That led to a torrent of controversy as well as the documentary "Blackfish." More than three years after the film's release, SeaWorld is still dealing with the resulting financial and public relations fallout, and has ended its captive orca breeding program. More from the Orlando Sentinel.

Orlando real estate could post some of 2017's hottest gains

Less than two years after metro Orlando led the nation in foreclosures, it's now expected to post some of the hottest real estate gains in the United States during 2017, two new reports show. More from the Orlando Sentinel.

Florida changes lethal injection drugs

In the midst of a major upheaval involving Florida's death-penalty laws, state corrections officials have adopted a new lethal-injection procedure that includes a drug never before used for executions and another used only by accident. More from WUSF.

Airbnb says its guests will make $1 mil impact on Tampa during College Football Championship

Airbnb, the Sunshine State’s leading community driven hospitality company, announced today that the Airbnb community will generate over $1 million in economic activity during the days leading up to the college football championship game between Alabama and Clemson. More from Florida Politics.

The world's largest collector-car auction drops by Kissimmee

Mecum Auctions, the world's largest collector-car auction, comes to Osceola Heritage Park in Kissimmee starting Jan. 6 . More than 100,000 auto aficionados are expected to attend, including as many as 10,000 auction participants. More from the Orlando Sentinel.

Out of the Box
Rosy Wolfsnail

It’s like something straight out of a 1950s horror flick—a killer snail that devours its own kind by tracking their slime trails with its handlebar moustache-shaped sensors. The 3-inch “rosy wolf snail” from Florida has redefined the expression “at a snail’s pace” by quickly decimating its relatives in Hawaii and on many other islands over the last 60 years.

» More from UF News.

Florida Originals
A rose by any other name

While preparing for a literary conference last year, Keith Huneycutt, an English professor at Florida Southern College, learned that novelist Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, who died in 1953 at age 57, had two secret ambitions. Two Florida professors have managed to fulfill one of them.