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Manatee
STATUS: Endangered
DESCRIPTION:
Manatees range in color from gray to brown. They use their two small front flippers to crawl along ocean or river bottoms. Their flat, horizontal tails are pumped up and down to move them along. Despite their small eyes and lack of outer ears, manatees are thought to see and hear quite well.
SIZE:
The average adult manatee weighs 1,500 to 1,800 pounds and measures ten to 12 feet in length.
POPULATION:
The largest population of manatees is found in Florida, where 3,000 individuals now live.
LIFESPAN:
Manatees are thought to live 50 to 60 years in the wild.
RANGE:
Manatees take up residence primarily in Florida’s coastal waters during winter and migrate either as far north as the Carolinas or as far west as Louisiana during the summer months.
HABITAT:
Manatees can be found in the warm waters of shallow rivers, bays, estuaries and coastal waters. Rarely do individuals venture into waters that are below 68 degrees Fahrenheit.
FOOD:
Manatees are herbivores and eat marine and freshwater plants.
BEHAVIOR: Well known for their gentle, slow-moving nature, manatees have also been known to body surf or barrel roll when playing. Normally they rest and feed often. Manatees communicate by squealing under water to demonstrate fear, stress or excitement.
OFFSPRING:
After a one-year gestation period, calves are born weighing between 60 and 70 pounds and measuring about three to four feet.
THREATS:
Most manatees have a pattern of scars on their backs or tails from collisions with boats. Scientists use these patterns to identify individuals. But these collisions can be fatal for the manatee. Besides boating accidents, manatees have been found crushed or drowned in flood-control gates and also suffer from pollution and habitat loss.
PROTECTION:
*CITES Appendix I, Florida Manatee Sanctuary Act, Marine Mammal Protection Act, Endangered Species Act.
*Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, an international treaty with more than 144 member countries. Appendix I listed species cannot be traded commercially. Appendix II listed species can be traded commercially only if it does not harm their survival.
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Latest page update: made by Animal-Planet
, Sep 21 2007, 2:20 PM EDT
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Manatee
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| Started By | Thread Subject | Replies | Last Post | ||
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| Anonymous | MANATEES ROCK!!!! | 1 | Nov 30 2008, 5:29 PM EST by eategg | ||
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Thread started: Jul 19 2007, 2:47 PM EDT
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Manatees are the most wonderful creatures on earth, I happen to own! We must protect our wonderful creatures so we have something vauleuble to pass onto our children!
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