Photo by Beverly A. Martin

Much of Florida’s natural environment — flora, fauna, even its landscape — has been lost or is on its way to disappearing. Among the state’s endangered wildlife are its manatees. Although their numbers are dwindling, you can still get a good look at them in the wild during the upcoming winter season.

Manatees are air-breathing aquatic mammals. They have a blimp-like body and a spatula-shaped tail. Their two short fore limbs resemble paddles and are used for steering and to hold food. Barnacles and algae often cling to their thick gray skin. Short, spiked hairs cover their faces.

Manatees typically grow to about 2,000 pounds and almost 12 feet. Some, though, have been known to weigh in at about 3,500 pounds.

These are slow moving creatures, usually cruising at about 2 mph. But their broad, powerful tails can sweep them along at 15 mph in short bursts.

However unlikely it may seem, the Florida manatee — the scientific name is West Indian manatee — is a distant cousin of the elephant. Scientists trace them both back some 60 million years to a common ancestor.

Like their elephant relatives, manatees are herbivores, eating only aquatic plants. And their forelimbs contain three to four fingernails, very similar to an elephant’s.

Because they are mammals, manatees must rise to the surface for a breath of air, as often as about every four minutes. But they can also stay down for as long as 15 minutes.



Habitat loss threatens Manatee survival

Manatees, also called sea cows, are harmless, docile animals with no natural enemies. They are flexible and adaptable to modifications in their habitat. Nonetheless, only about 2,200 Florida manatees remain, thanks mainly to their one predator — humans.

As Florida’s commercial and residential development increases, manatee habitat decreases. Dredging and filling, weed-control operations and rain washing pesticides, road oil and other toxic substances into rivers and oceans is killing off manatee feeding and breeding grounds. Scientists say that since 1960 as much as 80 percent of the seagrass beds manatees feed on have been destroyed. It’s that loss that threatens these mammals with extinction.

As their habitat decreases, the slow-moving manatees come into increasing contact with man — often with deadly results. From 1976 to 1999, the Florida Marine Research Institute reports that 44 percent of manatee deaths resulted from human-related activities.

Barges strike them. Locks and flood-control structures crush them. Fishing nets and crab-trap lines entangle them. Recreational boaters collide with them and slash manatee backs with their propellers. You can readily spot white-colored propeller scars on many manatees. But they’re the lucky ones — about a quarter of manatee deaths result from collisions with recreational boaters.



Manatee habitat

Another significant threat to the manatee is cold water. They may look fat, but they actually have no fatty layer to protect them from the cold. Prolonged exposure to water less than 60°F kills them.

Consequently, they seek warm waters with plentiful aquatic plants. Daily they eat as much as 10% of their body weight, or as much as 200 pounds of plants.

Manatees are widely dispersed in summer. Many can be found in estuaries, lagoons, bays and the lower reaches of rivers and canals. On the Gulf Coast they typically roam the waters from the Suwannee River south. On the Atlantic, from coastal Georgia south to Biscayne Bay, especially in the St. Johns River and the Indian River Lagoon system of north and central Florida.

Occasionally, though, they range farther afield. During summer 1995 one manatee was tracked as far north as Connecticut.

In winter the entire U.S. population of manatees resides in Florida waters. During cold snaps that push ocean temperatures below 68°F, manatees seek the warmth of inland waters, natural springs and the warm-water discharge of electric power plants. And that gives you the chance to get a good look at them.



Where to see them

Florida’s manatees split about evenly between its Gulf and Atlantic coasts. And both coasts have areas where you can see them in the wild. But perhaps the best manatee viewing location is inland at Blue Spring.

 

Located off the St. Johns River, as many as 60 manatees will congregate here when a cold snap sends them to the spring’s 72°F waters. A half-mile boardwalk stretches the length of the spring run, allowing excellent viewing through the shallow, clear water.

Best viewing is early morning from about mid-November to mid-March, during a cold snap. The spring flows into the St. Johns River, and when the river warms the manatees disperse.

Blue Spring State Park opens daily at 8 a.m and closes at sundown. Schedule your visit for a weekday, if possible. Weekends can get crowded when manatees are present. The park is located about 4 miles south of DeLand and 2 miles west of Orange City on French Avenue. Both cities are in Volusia County and easily reached via Interstate 4.

Contact: Blue Spring State Park, 2100 W. French Ave., Orange City, FL 32763, telephone (1) 386-775-3663

Web site: http://www.floridastateparks.org/bluespring/

 

As many as 300 manatees winter in the Crystal River area. To see them, though, you need to go snorkeling. If you don’t mind getting into the water — you’ll need a wet suit—you’ll experience the manatees close up in the wild. Local dive shops rent equipment, including small boats.

Head for the river’s King Spring, which lies between Banana Island and the mainland about 7 miles up from the Gulf. But do not swim towards the manatees, chase them or otherwise harass them — you’ll be subject to a fine. Be still and let the manatees come to you, which they’ll usually do.

Best viewing time is early morning from December through February on a cold weekday — weekends tend to be crowded.

The Crystal River and the town of the same name are located about 80 miles north of Tampa at the junction of U.S. 19 and S.R. 44.

Contact: Crystal River Chamber of Commerce, 1801 Northwest Hwy. 19, Suite 541, Crystal River, FL 34429, telephone (1) 904-795-3149.

Web site: http://ncvg.com/manatee.html

 

Homosassa offers year-round manatee viewing from the land. The park sits at the Homosassa River’s spring-fed headwaters, nine miles up from the Gulf of Mexico.

Unlike Crystal River and Blue Spring, the manatees at Homosassa are not in the wild. The Park provides a refuge for manatees born in captivity and serves as a half-way house before they’re released back to nature. A grate stretches across the headwaters to keep them from swimming downstream to the Gulf.

The park provides both a viewing platform and an underwater observatory, which allows you to see manatees swimming underwater while you stay dry.

The Homosassa manatees have no natural source of food at the spring, so they depend on the heads of lettuce rangers feed them. The parks rangers also offer daily manatee educational programs at 10:45 a.m., 1:00 p.m. and 3:15 p.m.

The park opens at 9 a.m. and closes at 5:30 p.m. Last entrance is at 4 p.m. It’s located about 75 miles north of Tampa just off River Road West (S.R. 490A) about a quarter mile west of U.S. 19 in the city of Homosassa Springs. The park charges admission — $7.95 for adults, $4.95 ages 3 to 12 and under 3 free.

Contact: Mailing address — 4150 S. Suncoast Boulevard, Homosassa, Florida, 34446. Information telephone: (1) 352-628-2311 (recorded information). Office telephone: (1) 352-628-5343 (Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.)

Web site: http://www.citrusdirectory.com/hsswp

 

The Florida Power and Light plant located here attracts manatees in cold weather to its warm-water discharge. Florida Power provides an observation platform for viewing the mammals.

To get there from I-95 in Fort Lauderdale, take the S.R. 84 (SW 24th Street) exit and head east. Upon reaching the port itself, turn right at the water and proceed to the designated parking area.

 

The warm-water discharge at the Florida Power and Light plant in Riviera Beach, near Palm Beach, also attracts manatees during a cold snap.

To reach the plant’s viewing area, take I-95 in Riviera Beach to 45th Street. Head east on 45th Street until it ends at Poinsettia Avenue. Turn left on Poinsettia Avenue and go north for about 15 blocks to FPL’s Manatee Viewing Area entrance. The viewing area, located on the south side of the plant, opens daily from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. but only from January 2 to February 28.

 

The Tampa Electric Company’s Big Bend Station too attracts manatees in winter to its warm-water discharge. Located on Tampa Bay, the electric company has built a special manatee viewing center with a viewing platform.

The center is open from early December through March on Wednesday through Saturday (closed Monday and Tuesday) from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. On Sunday from 1 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

To reach the Big Bend Manatee Viewing Center from I-75 in Tampa take the Apollo Beach exit onto Big Bend road. Head west toward the Gulf. About a mile after the road’s intersection with U.S. 41, the road makes a sharp left. The viewing center is at this turn.

Contact: A recorded information line is available 24 hours a day. Telephone 813-228-4289.

More about manatees

Manatees and mermaids
Sailors spotting manatees believed them to be mermaids, giving rise to the myth.

When viewing manatees notice:
• Finger nails on forelimbs, similar to those of their elephant ancestors.
• White propeller scars and algae on backs.

Help save the Manatees
For more information on manatees, efforts to save them and how you can help, visit the “Save the Manatee Club” Web site at: http://www.savethemanatee.org. The club was founded by Florida senator and former governor Bob Graham and singer Jimmy Buffet.

Also take a look at the Florida Marine Research Institute Web site, at http://www.floridamarine.org/features. It provides current manatee statistics and information on preservation programs.