manatees

As Florida braces for a cold snap, wildlife experts are concerned about the state’s struggling manatees.  Florida’s manatees are already starving because their preferred food, seagrass, is being smothered by algae encouraged by nutrient pollution. Arctic air approaching South Florida this weekend could put an even greater strain on the marine mammals.  “This is really […]

After long debate, officials in Florida have decided to test feeding wild manatees near Cape Canaveral. The move is unprecedented, as feeding wildlife is considered illegal. But with hundreds of manatees dying of starvation in 2021, wildlife conservationists are desperate to save these creatures. For weeks, state officials have been considering whether or not to […]

Florida’s manatees are in trouble, so much trouble that wildlife officials are considering an unprecedented intervention — feeding them. It is currently illegal to feed manatees, which are protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, the Endangered Species Act of 1973 and the Florida Manatee Sanctuary Act of 1978. However, so many manatees […]

Manatees are majestic creatures, and their presence near Florida brings a lot of awe from locals and tourists alike. But worsening pollution from agricultural runoff, wastewater and other pollutants is causing one of their primary food sources — seagrass — to run scarce. By October 2021 alone, nearly 1,000 manatees have died from food scarcity. […]

A record number of manatees have died in Florida this year due to food scarcity in the Indian River Lagoon, officials said. The loss of seagrass in the waters has caused manatees to die from starvation and malnutrition, according to TCPalm. A total of 841 manatees died, with 312 deaths occurring in Brevard County’s segment […]

By Julia Conley Conservation advocates in Florida are warning that 1,000 manatees in the state’s water could die this year — hundreds more than in recent years — due to starvation driven by water pollution, the climate crisis, and other man-made harms to the mammals’ ecosystem. As The Guardian reported Monday, 749 manatees died between […]

By Larry Brand Millions of gallons of water laced with fertilizer ingredients are being pumped into Florida’s Tampa Bay from a leaking reservoir at an abandoned phosphate plant at Piney Point. As the water spreads into the bay, it carries phosphorus and nitrogen – nutrients that under the right conditions can fuel dangerous algae blooms […]

The first few months of 2021 have been extremely deadly for manatees as food sources in Florida have become increasingly limited, scientists say. In the first six weeks of the new year, 317 manatee deaths were reported across Florida, CBSMiami reported. Since then, that number has risen to at least 432 deaths — about three […]