This is just a little page dedicated to the greatest, most beautiful and gentle creature on the planet...the Manatee! I hope you find the pictures and bits of information interesting!
How could you not absolutely adore this face?
Pictures!
Here are a few pictures I've accumulated of Manatees, I hope you enjoy!
Check back, I will add more pictures as I find them
Information!
Just a few tidbits of information that I have gathered up!
- Manatees were first spotted by fisherman who saw the manatees large tail and thought what they were looking at were mermaids.
- Manatees can grow up to 13 feet in length, and can weigh up to 2,000 lbs.
- The biggest Manatee ever documented weighed in at 3,500lbs!!
- Manatees can swim at speeds up to 20mph, but generally like to cruise along at 2-6mph.
- The Manatee eats over 60 different species of plants and seagrass
- You can find a Manatee in bays, estuaries and coastal waters, they like shallow water not usually exceeding 12 feet in depth.
- In the wild, Manatees can live up to 60 years.
- Manatees are gentle, social and non-aggressive mammals, their only known enemies are man and cold weather.
- There may be as few as 2,000 Manatees left! :(
- Manatees have really good eyesight!
- Manatees are often called "sea-cows" because their large size and slow grazing is like that of a regular cow!
- The difference between a Florida Manatee and a West-Indian Manatee is that the West-Indian Manatee has fingernails to help it dig for plants!
- Manatees can stay submerged for up to 15 minutes before surfacing for a new breath!
What's Being Done?
A few things that the state of Florida and the rest of the country are doing to help the Manatee out!
The Manatee License Plate!
The gentle manatee graces one of Florida's environmental license plates. The purchaser contributes to the "Save
The Manatee Trust Fund." This fund finances manatee research and recovery projects, including rescuing injured or stranded
manatees, researching habitat and behaviors, and working for laws to protect the manatee.
The Manatee Stamp!
Fifteen animals found on the United States Fish and Wildlife Service Endangered Species list will be featured on the stamps.
The 32-cent stamps include: the Black-footed ferret, Thick-billed parrot, Hawaiian monk seal, American crocodile, Ocelot,
Schaus swallowtail butterfly, Wyoming toad, Brown pelican, California condor, Gila trout, San Francisco garter snake,
Woodland caribou, Florida panther, Piping plover, and the Florida manatee.
"We appreciated the input we received from the Save the Manatee group and valued their suggestions as we finalized the design
for this stamp," said Postmaster General Marvin Runyon. "We want to increase awareness of these wonderful animals, and
other endangered species, and hope this sheet of stamps will help in that endeavor."
Links!
Some really cool links on the web that are all about Manatees!
- These sites are just filled with all kinds of great info and pictures!
- Looking for some really cool Manatee merchandise? You found the right spot!!!
- Thinking about taking a vacation?? How about...
Click the manatee now to Adopt one of your very own!!
This Page was Created on April 24th, 1998...and last Updated on November 4th, 1998
 
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