Story of the Manatee
The great
manatee, sometimes called the mermaid, is believed by some to
have been descendants of the elephant run off of land and into
the water because of land development and humans years ago.
Today you
can help save this endangered species by slowing down while operating
your boats and other recreational watercraft so as not to run
over, maim, seriously injure or destroy and kill these beautiful
1000 lb or more mammals. The population of these gentle slow moving
air breathing vegetarians number approximately 2,400 in Florida
and have been in existence for approximately 50 to 60 million
years.
Having abandoned
the land for sea and still an air breathing mammal, legs were
no longer necessary and were transformed into flippers in the
front and a broad tail in the back. This is the most widely accepted
theory of how the manatee came into existence. Also the manatee
and elephants are similar that they both are herbivores who eat
plants and have the same tooth structure. Also the manatee has
fingernails in the flippers similar to those of an elephant.
It is not
quite known how the manatee got its name. Its roots may be in
the language of the Carieb Indians for whom the Caribbean Sea
is named. The carieb word manatee means woman's breast.
That is, the manatee, a marine mammal, has mammae that resemble
those of humans.
The manatee
with a vaguely similar face to that of humans were thought to
be beautiful woman by sailors who had been out to sea for a long,
long time -- thus began the legend of the mermaid. The manatee
with a very streamlined shape usually travel through the water
at about two miles an hour, but they are capable of short bursts
of speed up to 15 miles an hour. From a distance, a manatee could
be mistaken for half human, half fish weighing up to 2,000 lb
and as much as 12 feet in length.
The normal
manatee is approximately 1000 lb, but some grow up to 3,500 lb..
There is something regal about the manatee in which it moves and
acts, moving sleek in the water biding their time, but disappearing
at a flip of the tail when startled.
The manatee
face seems expressionless and sad as though they know the fate
of their species. Also their only defense is to swim away when
faced with danger. Manatees have no natural enemies in the wild,
yet earlier in history, because of the manatees' size and awkward
looks, some people would spear them with pitchforks, blast them
with shot guns, attack them with axes, carve their initials in
them and run over them with speed boats.
Torturing
these sea creatures didn't begin with European settlers. Kept
in small pens for slaughter, Indians ate manatee meat. A large
manatee would feed an entire Indian tribe. Manatee oil was used
by American missionaries to burn in their lamps. Catholics who
could not eat meat were allowed to eat manatees. They had meat
from the torso or the tail which was eaten cold after being pickled
in spices.
In Florida,
Timucuan and Seminole Indians harpooned manatees from canoes.
It was average for a hunter to kill at least twelve a season.
The Indians would supply the Spanish manatee meat. The bones were
also used by the Indians much the same way as ivory. It was believed
that by crushing the bones and ingesting them would be medicine
containing a curative power. Bones of manatee were also worn as
good luck charms. Before
settlers in Florida arrived it is not known how large the manatee
population was but believed to be quite large. At a place called
Caelpens Key in the Florida Keys manatees were penned in a small
cove until slaughter.
Bones and
skeletons were also valuable for scientific reasons. In
the 1800's museums paid $160.00 for a skeleton and $100.00 more
for the hide. There are only 10 skeletons in the world and only
one of them is in the United States at Harvard University. Today
an average of 85 to 90 manatees die every year. With a low metabolic
rate, cold weather is dangerous to a manatee. They are muscle
as opposed to fat. When temperatures drop below 68 degrees around
mid November, the manatees look for winter sites. With poorer
plants and the wide spread loss of grazing and breeding ground
the survival of the manatee is threatened. It is noted by biologists
that 80 percent of sea grass beds that manatees needed have been
destroyed since 1960.
Pesticides,
toxic waste and oil from roadways all have contributed to loss
of manatee survival. Development of Florida coastal areas put
a strain on the manatees existence.
As a mammal,
manatees rise to the surface of the water to breathe every four
to five minutes or as long as ten to fifteen minutes. With just
the tip of the nose exposed above the surface a manatee's gray
color can make it impossible to see by an approaching boat. Although
a manatee can hear very well, it is hard to tell a boat's exact
location since the sound comes from every direction.
Manatees are
very affectionate and have frequent body contact. My personal
experience of having snorkeled was a wondrous experience. One
of them came to me and put their nose against mine. It was an
experience that I enjoyed very much and will never forget.
If you have
the chance to go to Florida, here are some places listed where
you may view and visit the great manatee. And thank you for incorporating
manatee awareness into your life:
