Conservation Guide: 10 Fun Facts about Manatees

1. Manatees common 3 m (10 ft.) and 363 to 544 kg (800 to 1,200 lbs.). Manatees have paddle-like tails and fore flippers, and no hind limbs.
2. Manatees belong to the mammalian order Sirenia. There are three species of manatee: Trichechus inunguis, the Amazonian manatee; Trichechus senegalensis, the West African manatee; and Trichechus manatus, the West Indian manatee. Scientists additionally acknowledge two subspecies of West Indian manatee: T.m. latirostris, the Florida manatee, and T.m. manatus, the Antillean manatee. The order Sirenia has one different residing species, the dugong. A fifth species, Steller’s sea cow, was hunted to extinction by 1768.
3. All manatees inhabit tropical and subtropical waters of North and South America and Africa. The West Indian and West African manatees reside in rivers, bays, estuaries, and coastal areas. They will transfer freely between freshwater and saltwater habitats. The Amazonian manatee is restricted to the freshwater Amazon basin.
4. All manatees are herbivores. The Florida manatee feeds on extra that 60 kinds of grasses and vegetation. A manatee’s solely tooth are molars, for grinding vegetation. Some analysis means that manatees periodically require contemporary water. West Indian manatees have been seen congregating at river mouths and consuming from hoses, culverts, and sewage outfalls.
5. A feminine manatee, referred to as a cow, may give start about as soon as each three years. Gestation lasts about 12 months. At start, West Indian manatees measure about 1.2 to 1.4 m (4 to 4.5 ft.) and weigh 27 to 32 kg (60 to 70 lbs.). A calf nurses from teats underneath the mom’s pectoral flippers.
6. Florida manatees are extremely inclined to chilly; it’s commonplace for them to die throughout extraordinarily chilly climate. However human actions pose a a lot better menace to manatees. Every year, many Florida manatees are killed and injured by watercraft, the best human-induced explanation for Florida manatee deaths. Different threats embody entanglement, poaching, and habitat destruction. All manatees are threatened or endangered. They’re protected by nationwide and native laws in each nation wherein they’re discovered.
7. Manatees are nonaggressive, nonterritorial herbivores that spend most of their time feeding (six to eight hours per day) and resting (two to 12 hours per day). The rest of their day is spent touring, investigating objects, and socializing by interacting with different manatees.
8. Marine zoological parks akin to SeaWorld assist preserve manatees. SeaWorld is allowed to rescue and rehabilitate unwell, injured, or orphaned manatees. The primary precedence of the Manatee Rescue and Rehabilitation program is to return wholesome manatees to their pure habitat.
9. Manatees emit sounds underneath water. The chirps, whistles, or squeaks are most likely produced within the larynx. They appear to make these sounds when they’re frightened, sexually aroused, or interacting with one another.
10. Manatees have well-developed eyes. Within the water, they will detect objects from tens of meters away. A manatee’s retinas include each rod and cone cells, indicating that they most likely have the power to see each dim and vibrant mild. Latest exams counsel manatees can distinguish between blue and inexperienced colours, though the complete extent of their shade imaginative and prescient is unknown, and extra research are wanted.

Courtesy: SeaWorld Parks & Leisure Orlando

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