While manatees have no natural enemies (awww) and can live for up to 60 years or more, their lives are often cut short due to human-related causes. The No. 1 culprit: watercraft.
"Manatees spend the majority of their time in shallow water," Canon says. "Especially in Florida, boats are common in these same shallow waters. Boats present two threats to manatees: the boat propeller, which can cut a manatee multiple times causing devastating damage; and the boat hull, which can cause severe blunt force trauma if the boat impacts the manatee at a high speed."
If you own a boat and you're headed out in known manatee territory, make sure to stay in deep water when possible and practice common sense and take proper precautions — you can evendownload a free brochureon the topic from the Save the Manatee Club (but warning, the cover image of a brokenhearted manatee and the words "if you love me, please don't touch or feed me" might break your heart).
"The best thing that boaters can do to help protect manatees is to boat carefully in areas where manatees are common," Canon says. "Boaters should also obey all posted speed signs. Manatee zones are researched extensively for their importance to manatees and the likelihood that manatees will be present — manatee zones are not decided willy-nilly. Boaters can also keep an eye out for manatees that may need help, such as lone calves, manatees with fresh wounds, or manatees that may be cold-stressed, and report them to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC)."
While manatees have been known to be at risk for decades (hence the creation of the Save the Manatee Club in 1981 by singer/songwriter Jimmy Buffett and former U.S. Sen. Bob Graham), many advocates feel we're not doing enough to keep them safe. "Manatees are currently listed as 'threatened' under the Endangered Species Act," Canon says. "They were downgraded from an 'endangered' status in 2017 due to their rebounding population numbers. Save the Manatee Club did not agree with the downlisting as many of the threats that resulted in their endangered status have either not improved, or worsened. For example, based on population counts and death statistics from FWC, 8 percent of the Florida manatee population died in 2017. In 2018, when there was a statewide case of red tide the manatee lost 13 percent of its population."
"West Indian manatees in the United States areprotected under federal lawby the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, and the Endangered Species Act of 1973, which make it illegal to harass, hunt, capture or kill any marine mammal," Canon continues. "West Indian manatees are also protected by the Florida Manatee Sanctuary Act of 1978. Violations of these federal or state laws can be met with civil or criminal convictions associated with monetary fines and/or imprisonment."