Thought you might be interesting in this email I received that was very heartwarming. It was from a student who was doing a report on manatees and had some questions for me. They were very good and well thought-out questions so I gave her my best answers.
It is just very touching to me to see this caring - right out of the blue - and I believe this is really how the vast majority of people truly are very caring individuals. Anyway here is her email (omitting her name) and her questions with my answers, hope you find it as touching as I did, Best, Carol
Her email:
Here are my questions. Please answer any you have time to answer:
Have you noticed any changes in the population of manatees over the years you have been photographing them?
Hmmm that is a broad topic but first of all actually I don't think I've really seen any significant "changes" except I've noticed a bit of an increase of the numbers of manatees - on average - at the Crystal River sites I frequent. Unfortunately I haven't noticed any less manatee scarring percentage from boat injuries and I have noticed an increase in the numbers of "larger scars" on manatees. This seems to point to injuries from larger motors, bigger propellers and boat hulls and also more unusual injuries like more scars from entanglement sources, etc.
In the past, interaction with humans (boating, encroaching on their habitat, etc) had a negative affect on manatees. Have you noticed a change in the way humans interact with manatees over the years? Has that change been positive or negative?
I have noticed that more people are aware of manatees than ever before and so many more people really try hard to respect them. But with the number of boats sold in Florida alone, increasing rapidly every year, public awareness and caring doesn't seem to be able to offset the increasing numbers of boats on the water and of course some of those boaters are downright negligent and careless. One thing I keep hearing from caring members of the public is that they just don't see enough "slow manatee zone" signs on the waterways, either the signs are hard to read or in places that are hard for them as boaters to see or there just aren't enough signs where they need to be. So it seems if I speak to individual boaters most want to care but are confused about the manatee situation (so this clearly calls for more outreach and education). But then there are boaters who are very insensitive and don't care at all and this minority seems to make themselves heard loudly when "boating groups and lobbies" form and lobby for their agendas.
So as far as boating just with the shear numbers of boats on the water and the lack of consistent manatee slow signs/zones that people can understand results in an impact that can only be negative and will get worse quickly if changes aren't made.
With development, yes definitely negative change - but I feel a lot of that damage was done years ago when it was prevalent to create man made canals, seawalls and other waterways that changed the manatee's habitat drastically. Today those water areas don't "flush out" like they should naturally and you have seen yourself Crystal River suffer from this along with many other man-made or human caused troubles (I could go on and on). But there are environmental factors too, like large surges of salt water that have overwhelmed the freshwater Crystal and Homosassa Rivers in recent years (1993 was the worst), and killed a lot of the freshwater vegetation that the manatee eat and proliferated the growth of undesirable algae, etc. So I myself have seen the negative changes in the water at Crystal River every manatee season and the clearer water harder and harder to find. But the manatee still seem to find food - we don't know if they are just ranging farther to find something to eat during their winter time at the springs or if they are eating other items.
Development must be kept in check in prime manatee areas and areas like the Three Sisters Spring at Crystal River are vitally important habitat. Three Sisters is up for development but a late push is forming to save it. US Fish and Wildlife, manatee researchers and members of the concerned public feel that if we lose the Three Sisters Spring area to development we have lost the major battle at Crystal River for the manatee - nothing is as important as saving that area for the wintering manatee as far as the manatees at the Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge are concerned.
When we dove in the Crystal River area, the water was still cold and they stayed near warmer springs. As the water warms up, how far do manatees range and does that make it more difficult for you to find and photograph them?
That is a very good question and one that I know a bit about... :-)....! When you see photographs of manatee most are taken by patient photographers like myself in the clear-water springs. This is because manatee are infinitely harder to find and photograph in murky water areas. And since the clearer water at the Crystal and Homosassa Rivers is harder and harder to find every year it makes it difficult to photograph them well. But this effects not only our photography - at Crystal River the clearer water is the warmer water and the Three Sisters Spring area at Crystal River is the warmest place on the river - especially way back in that sanctuary out front by the shore is the warmest spot on the river when the weather is cold and that is where a lot of mothers will take their little calves to stay warm.
When the water warms manatee tend to spread quickly to find food and the warmest spots. During the winter they will range as far as the water temperature lets them. If you look at a satellite map of Crystal River - here is a link: Satellite Map of Crystal River, it is 7 to 10 miles from their warm spots at Crystal River out to the Gulf of Mexico. So in the winter if the weather and water warms a bit they will spread out but not all the way to the Gulf of Mexico. Does that make sense? They will spread out until the water cools below 68 degrees F and then turn back to warmer water or risk what they call "cold stun" or hypothermia.
Right now in the Spring the water is warming fast and many manatee are at or near the Gulf of Mexico right now, with the younger manatee and mother manatee with small calves staying nearer the warmest parts of Crystal River until they can travel to warmer waters in the Gulf. The female manatee have smaller ranges usually than the males, and the male manatee can range huge distances up and down the West Coast of Florida and even sometimes the panhandle and beyond. And on the East Coast of Florida the male manatees can range way up the East Coast of the United States during the summer, following their favorite food sources and then back down to Florida when it cools. Also the males might be looking for different groups of females to create "genetic diversity". But the females don't range as far as the males when it warms and the East Coast of Florida manatee population and the West Coast of Florida manatee population don't seem to mix at all (so they aren't swimming down through the Florida Keys to the other side, etc.)
Photographing manatee when it warms in Spring/Summer/Fall is a challenge but not impossible. There are some places where manatee are sighted regularly and we have found some by accident (and surprise) while just swimming or scuba diving. But the water is never as clear as the clear days at Crystal River, but I'm still on a quest to photograph them in as many places around the state as I can. Wish me luck!! :-)
Do they seem more active when the water warms up? What are some of the changes you see in their behavior during different seasons?
Two answers to this:
1) At Crystal River the manatee seem more active when it is a little cooler. Possibly this is to keep warm, they do conserve heat on the very coldest mornings but still seem to be more active maybe trying to find the warmest spots, warm sun, or socialize near each other to stay warmer. When it warms at Crystal River they go to deeper water to feed and rest and seem to sleep a lot more when it is warmer at Crystal River and are then less active.
2) In other areas of the state when the water warms they are very active when it is warm (as in summer even when the water is 85 degrees or so). They travel a lot in the summer or warmer months and search for most of their more nutritious salt water grasses, etc, so that may be why they seem to be so much more active in the warmer months in areas away from the springs.
But it seems when it warms up when they are wintering at the springs, like Crystal River, they tend to be less active in the springs and that might be because they have used so much energy staying warm, etc that they are in great need of food and rest.
So I think I've seen manatee most active in the spring or summer in the warmer waters of the Gulf. I've seen them active at Crystal River when it is cold and they are trying to stay warm and pass the time till it warms up, plus possibly by grouping together and socializing at Crystal River they are active and stay warmer at the same time when it is cold in the colder months - and then if it warms up for a bit at Crystal River I've seen them not active at all - catching up on rest and lacking energy from less food probably.
Do they find abundant vegetation to feed on? How does that change by season?
They eat over 60 species of plants - freshwater ones and ones in seawater. The seawater plants are the most nutritious and have the most protein. Feeding changes drastically by season as manatee find their favorite foods of the season. That is one reason the calf stays with its mother for 2 years and more, it must learn from mom where the best vegetation is to eat at the proper times. It is fascinating to watch a mother manatee showing her little one which plants to eat! And manatee have amazing memories and can remember from year to year where to find their favorite food at that particular time of the year. This is another reason why we must save manatee habitat, because every bit of habitat destroyed now means the manatee that learned to feed there must find somewhere else to feed and if we develop too much manatee habitat in an area a manatee could actually starve thinking its food was at or around those spots as it had been for years and not having enough time or energy to range farther to find more food could be disastrous for the manatee. Thus protecting habitat is important, but almost more important is protecting portions of habitat throughout their range so there aren't more large areas of food and habitat that are lost.
What do you think people can do to better insure their long-term survival?
1) More education and outreach to the public as to the manatee's plight
2) Remaining manatee habitat must be protected and protected consistently throughout their range (not just in one or two or a few main areas)
3) Better and more signage and enforcement of existing slow boating manatee zones
4) Manatee sanctuaries (like you see at Crystal River) placed all throughout their range, all over the state and throughout the yearly times when they are there.
5) More slow boating zones and enforcement
6) Development will occur but it must not encroach more on the remaining vital manatee habitat
7) GO SEE MANATEES! Nothing moves people like seeing manatees "in person" at places like Crystal River (but of course educate yourself on manatee interaction laws and protocol and respect/protect the manatee in the wild), but even seeing manatees at aquaria like Epcot, Sea World or zoos around the world helps people care and understand.
8) Read this book, 'The Florida Manatee Biology and Conservation' by Roger L. Reep & Robert K. Bonde - It is the best book on the Florida manatee and a delightful read as well. It interests scientists but also is easy to read for everyone - with fascinating real world stories and tidbits from Bob Bonde gathering on the over 25 years he has studied and been in the water with manatees all over the state but particularly at Crystal River. In fact you might have even seen Bob Bonde and/or his associates surveying the manatee at Crystal River as he is there most of the cool days when lots of manatee are gathered at Three Sister's Spring. Plus all the proceeds of this book go to a fund at the University of Florida that helps fund the next generation of manatee scientists and caretakers, the authors set it up this way and were incredibly generous to do this to help ensure the manatee's future.
9) Read this short but powerful article by Bob Bonde 'Helping Manatees Helps the Planet'
What are some of your favorite experiences with manatees?
I have so many heartwarming manatee memories. The one that tops all and brings tears of joy to my eyes is the recent time I was so fully surprised to see - on one cold morning that I arrived at Three Sisters by myself - a small wriggling little manatee calf! It is so rare to see a newborn manatee, especially one that is just hours-old with umbilical cord piece, and to see the mother and several other manatees "wrestling each other" for control over the little baby was so extraordinary! The behavior still isn't fully understood, it is certainly manatee excitement and curiosity over a new infant and if it got out of hand could be detrimental to the baby if it couldn't bond with its mother. But also the other females involved seemed so absolutely protective of the new infant, always pushing it to the surface to breathe and researchers have even suggested to me that maybe one or more of the females were relatives or "hopeful adoptive mothers". There is so much to learn about manatees and this special time I had alone with them observing this extraordinary moment with a new arrival was and still is one of the best moments of my life! Plus the manatee infant (that I named "Angel") was soooo cute!!!
Many other memorable experiences but one that comes to mind is when I was snorkeling in the upper Florida Keys - looking for seahorses actually - and my buddy waved to me excitedly and pointed to a mother and baby manatee that just arrived (as I recall it was the first or second week of December). What was so extraordinary about this encounter was we were just quietly observing the mother and calf, by ourselves, and then the mother seemed to trust us, approached us and then seemed to almost want to adopt me or something! I don't know but I suspect this mother manatee had been by herself for a while, taking care of her baby, etc., and was possibly starved for "other" company and companionship. The mother wouldn't stop bumping, rubbing and playing around me and my buddy and I were both so delighted, amazed and enthralled by this event! Still we soon agreed to exit the water so we wouldn't accidently be distracting the mother from her calf and getting the rest she needed, etc. That was just one of those times you can't ever predict as it "just happened" and proved to me that the extraordinary natural curiosity and playfulness of the manatee is its basic nature.
Thank you so much for taking time to answer these questions. I really appreciate you sharing your experience with manatees. I can see by your photos that you care about them very much.
Thank you again,
