The Florida Manatees

The Florida Manatees

January 11-15th, 2002

     Manatees are curious marine mammals that spend their day eating, sleeping, and playing. It was the playing part that drew us to Central Florida to get a closer look at these shy sea cows. A few years ago we discovered that not only could you get a close-up view of these strange looking animals from above the water, but it was indeed possible to get in the water and snorkel with these gentle giants. We started researching and found that the Florida manatee, a subspecies of the West Indian manatee, ranges from the St John’s River south to around Miami on the Atlantic coast, and that they tend to congregate anywhere from the Everglades north to the Suwannee River on the Gulf Coast. Of most interest was the fact that they migrate to warmer waters during the winter months. They seek out as refuge from the cold, the warm spring fed waters of Crystal River, Weeki Wachee Spring, and Homasassa Spring, which are a constant 72 degrees Fahrenheit year round.

     The best time to see the manatees gathering in the rivers is anywhere from October to April. We decided to book a flight to Tampa on January 11, 2002 in order to head for Homasassa Springs State Wildlife Park. It would be here that we would get our first glimpse of a manatee. The park houses manatees who have been injured or orphaned and helps to rehabilitate them with the hope of releasing them into the wild again someday. They have platforms from which you can view the huge animals lazily swimming about in the crystal clear green waters of the spring. They also have an underwater viewing area, the Fishbowl Underwater Observatory, where you can come face to face with these strange looking creatures without even getting wet. It is quite a thrill to have them looking back at you with the same curious gaze. Adding to the scene are huge schools of jacks that tirelessly swim in circles past the viewing window, separating only for the manatees. In addition to the marine attractions the park offers a look at other native Florida wildlife. Nature trails guide you through the park and give you the chance to view several species up close. Of special interest to me was the bird enclosure that held many birds that could not survive in the wild, the park provides them with as natural habitat and diet as possible. Here we were able to view and photograph several amazing birds such as: caracara, bald eagles, red tailed hawk, great horned owls, pelicans, ibis, and flamingos.

     Homasassa Springs is a spectacular park but it would not be the highlight of our trip. We headed north to Crystal River where it is possible to swim with the manatees. You can either do this on a guided trip or on your own. We chose a guided trip for our first excursion in order to familiarize ourselves with the area, and then the next day we rented kayaks to explore on our own. Our guided tour and kayak rentals were through a company called Birds Underwater. They were absolutely great! They are friendly and knowledgeable with a respect for these animals that showed in everything they did. Our guide was Charlie Slider. Charlie was an excellent guide and he shared his knowledge of the area and the manatees while we cruised along the river on our way to the springs. He is also a great underwater photographer and videographer. He takes underwater video of the encounters and then you can purchase them at the end of the trip. You can’t have a better souvenir then that.

     We began our tour at around noon. Our group was nice and small consisting of only 8 people including the guide. Our first stop came after about a 20 minute boat ride to a sanctuary. A sanctuary consists of floating ropes that mark an area where the manatee can rest without human disturbance. We slowly and silently, manatees take any loud noise as threatening, entered the water. Now 72 degree water might be warm to a manatee but it is quite cold to most of us humans! It is necessary to wear a full wetsuit (available for rent from Birds Underwater) but even then the shock of the cold water takes your breath away for a few seconds. After catching my breath I put on my mask and started swimming through the murky water toward the ropes. You are not allowed to enter the roped area or touch the ropes but you can get close enough to see the manatees sleeping on the bottom. Many of the manatees are of course outside the roped areas and it is these that you get to interact with. As I got closer to the ropes I turned around and noticed a manatee swimming towards our group. Charlie pointed out that she was nursing, and he was quite excited to discover that she was nursing twin calves! The mother’s nipple is located just behind her flipper in her “armpit” and sure enough there she was floating towards us with a calf snuggled under each flipper. It was a site to behold! We all floated around taking in the scenery and company before getting back on the boat and heading for our next stop.

     You might be wondering what the rules of contact are with these gentle giants so we better go over some manatee etiquette. You are allowed to touch, pet, tickle, and or scratch the manatees so long as you are only using one hand. Placing both hands on a manatee at once is considered to be “riding” and is against the law. It is also forbidden to touch a manatee while it is nursing, and you should wait for the manatee to approach you rather then chasing them down. Chasing a manatee is considered harassment. But don’t worry they will come to you! They are shy yet curious marine mammals and they enjoy human interaction. When they have had enough of you they will just swim away to rest in one of the sanctuaries. It is amazing, but they really seem to know that humans can’t enter these areas. Okay on to our next encounter.

     The next spring that we visited would prove to be our best encounter. We jumped into the water and were immediately greeted by three young manatees who wanted to play. They swim right up to you and look into your eyes. They are so close that you can count the whiskers on their snout! As they cruise by I reach my hand out to pet them, they feel rubbery and seem to quiver with excitement. They love to be scratched! If you scratch near their flippers they launch into these barrel rolls in order to give you access to those big bellies. All 8 of us float around with big smiles as we rub their bellies and tickle their “underarms”. This encounter lasts for about 45 minutes. The manatees decide they have had enough scratching and they just swim off disappearing into the murky water. It was an experience that I will never forget.

     Everyone should experience the grace of these beautiful animals. I think we would work harder to protect them if more people had intimate interaction with the manatees. Just remember to operate your boat at idle and slow speed in areas where manatees are likely to be. This easy and simple rule, if followed, will help save these endangered animals.

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