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Monday's Daily Pulse
What you need to know about Florida today
› Florida bats are now protected species
Most non-game species in Florida have some protection, but state wildlife officials have specifically listed bats in categories similar to gopher tortoises and other native species whose numbers and habitats have been dwindling with the onslaught of development.
› Firework sales up as Independence Day approaches
With less than a week until Independence Day, business was booming Friday at JR's Fireworks on the Florida/Alabama border. "It's been pretty good this morning," owner JR Poppell said. "Tomorrow everybody will be off work and they'll come up here and get them, I hope."
› State postpones controversial toll road through horse farms
Gov. Rick Scott’s office announced late Friday that it is postponing any further work on a controversial toll road called the Coastal Connector that upset horse farmers in the Ocala area. See the letter from Gov. Scott's office to Ocala's Mayor Guinn, here.
› Powerboat Grand Prix sees scant crowds at Lido Beach
The Sarasota Powerboat Grand Prix races this past weekend typically draw more than 20,000 people packed along the 2.5 mile-long beach on race days. But on Saturday, it was more like a few hundred.
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