photos of manatees
To see more Florida manatee
pictures, click here
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florida manatee underwater high resolution photo |

stock photograph of manatees, an
endangered species |

florida manatee interacts with swimmer, underwater stock picture |

mother and calf manatees photograph
florida subspecies |
|
common
name |
Florida
Manatee, a subspecies of the West Indian Manatee |
scientific
name |
Trichechus
manatus latirostris |
range |
tropical
Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea from North America to Brazil |
viewing
hotspots |
Crystal
River, Florida USA |
habitat |
coastal,
shallow sea grass beds, and rivers |
size |
to
11 feet (3.5m), 3000 lbs |
diet |
sea grasses |
trivia |
toenails look
just like elephant's; mother and calf communicate with squeaks; female's
mammary glands in armpit! |
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The
endearing, endangered, Florida Manatee, Trichechus manatus
latirostris, is a subspecies of the West Indian Manatee. It would be
difficult to mistake this rotund marine mammal for a whale, dolphin,
shark, fish, or just about any other animal alive, but supposedly
desparate sailors reaching the New World imagined they had found the
mermaids of legend, hence the manatee's biological classification as
a Sirenian, of the order Sirenia. Anyone lucky enough to have
encountered the gentle, curious manatee knows that they can be quite
charming, but to mistake its portly gray body for that of a shapely
sea seductress? Its other nickname- sea cow- seems much more
appropriate.
Florida's Crystal River area virtually
guarantees one the opportunity of coming face to face with the sea
cow. During winter months, cool ocean temperatures force them to
move inshore and up into the warmer spring-fed riverways. The
majority of the estimated 3000 to 3500 surviving manatees can be
found concentrated in central Florida, drawing people from all over
the world eager for a chance to snorkel with them. Three top spots
for in-water encounters are Homosassa River, King's Spring, and
Three Sisters. Due to the manatee's endangered status, official
sanctuaries have been created in which people are not permitted, but
the manatees regularly swim out of these areas to interact with
swimmers.
Manatees are herbivorous and eat from 100
to 300 pounds of sea grasses per day. They spend much of their days
sleeping, but also allow time for socializing. Females give
birth to one, five-foot long calf weighing 100 pounds once every
three to five years. Calves start nursing just a few hours after
birth. They remain with their mothers for up to two years, during
which time they learn skills critical for survival- the yearly
migration patterns, locations of the feeding grounds and winter
refuge sites, etc.
On average, 100 to 200 Florida manatees die
each year. Boat collisions, propeller injuries, toxic red-tide
plankton blooms, pollution and discarded fishing tackle have been
problems for years. Rampant development along the Florida coastline
in the last 30 years has also had a serious impact on the manatee
population, replacing manatee grazing and breeding grounds with
man's shopping centers and housing complexes.
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KEYWORDS
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vertical |
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