Manatee Watching

Its so wonderful to see wildlife out in the wild. There's nothing more thrilling to me than being out on the bay and seeing dolphin and manatees. One of my favorite memories is of being on a boat on Sarasota Bay, being able to look down into the water and seeing a mother and young manatee swimming right beside us!

I do appreciate, however, getting to see manatees in less "wild" conditions, like near power plants in the winter. Once a year I try to go to Apollo Beach to the Teco Power Plant/Manatee Viewing Station. As you know, manatees used to migrate further south as the Gulf and Bay waters cooled. They can't survive in water below 67 degrees. But now they travel to nearby canals and rivers that have power plants on them. The plants use the waters to cool their machinery, discharging the now warm water back into the canals. This warm water is very attractive not only to manatees, but some species of fish (sharks, tarpon, creville jacks, snook) and rays. On a cold morning you can see dozens of manatees from the viewing platform.

Our recent cold spell killed 77 manatees, I was told. However, according to this year's census, there was still the highest number of manatees in ten years.

photo: The nose knows! A manatee lifts its head out of the water for a breath of air (and perhaps a little people watching?)

(photo copyright Anne Cederberg 2010)