Life lived just beneath the surface of the water can be a dangerous life, even for a gentle sea cow just happily munching on sea grass. Sadly, recreational boats recklessly colliding with manatees in posted “no wake zones” account for 1/3 of the deaths of manatees today. The problem is so pronounced that scientists often track manatees in the wild by the shape of the deep propeller wounds on their backs. Mother manatees instinctively push their young below as boats approach, and protectively bear the wounds inflicted by leisure marine sports. In spite of their obstacles, however, this endangered species endures as a unique and special creature often seen grazing plants under the blue Gulf of Mexico sea.
I went to the Manatee Visitor Center on a recent trip to
Florida. It was interesting to learn about manatees. Manatees like to eat all
day much like cows. They are peaceful vegetarian grazers who love the warm
waters of Florida. They can’t live in waters less than 68 degrees so they used
to migrate to the hot springs during the winter. Now, they don’t travel so far,
they winter at the power plant near Tampa. The plant heats the waters in the
process creating electricity. This keeps the manatees toasty warm in the winter,
but creates a new marriage of convenience between “big coal” interests and an
endangered species.
When I was there, the manatees were lying outside of the
power plant water exhaust flumes warming up in the hot waters. I just wish I
could have been closer to get a better picture for this blog. Environmentalists
do appreciate the fact that the manatees are safe from boats and direct tourist
interference when next to the power plant.
This is because when they go to the native hot springs, tour companies
that charge travellers to ‘swim with the manatees’ are waiting with crowds of
the curious. Some feel that outlawing
these businesses that sell interaction with an endangered species might be a
better approach to their conservation, allowing them to winter in the more
natural setting of the hot springs.
Until then, they rest peacefully next to the massive Tampa power
plant. Like many places around the
planet, Florida struggles to protect wildlife while also promoting tourism and
a healthy economy.
Living beneath the surface in shallow waters harvesting sea
grass is their way of life. They weigh in at about 1,000lbs. But beware, when
Florida tourists try to interact with them out in the Gulf of Mexico it can be
a crime, (with fines of as much as $15,000!) so please give them and all other
endangered wildlife respectful space if you visit Florida. Millions of tourists come to Florida to enjoy
the beaches and wildlife every year, and the crowds can be stressful for the
native species, but this is also true everywhere that we may sojourn in the
world. Let’s leave nature alone and view from a distance!
It was nice to learn more about these special animals. We
don’t have them in the Northwest so it was fun to see the manatees’ winter home
by the steam plant.
