Zookeeper's Lounge

Manatee's are SO cool! I have like..a bajillion photos of 'em (course I would get yelled at if I posted 'em all ) And come...Friday...I'LL HAVE REAL PHOTOS OF THEM! Yippie! (To read about my looonngg 6-hour quest, go to the Intro place) I want to work with Manatee's in Florida when I grow up.
I'll have to post a pic later....

yeah they are cool
i have a few pics of them from the columbus zoo
they have a great exhibit with 5 manatees currently (they are always moving in and out as they are here only on a rehabilitation basis) along with sea turtles, cow-nosed rays, ruddy and other ducks, and fish (and a mangrove swamp with live trees and crabs)
last time i was at the florida coast i never saw any just some dolphins, turtles (including a baby sea turtle), and a gator

we dont need to have tons of pics posted but a few wont hurt (and links to them are better than puting them on this site)
heres one i took at the zoo i left the flash on accidently but luckily it was in the perfect place and looks almost like sun shining through the water and has a cool effect

I agree; manatees are cool. It is unlikely you can "work with manatees in Florida" in a traditional sense. Manatees have been protected in the state for more than 100 years, since 1893. Because of their very endangered status, they may not be in captivity unless they are in a condition where they would die in the wild. So anyone caring for them is as a small portion of a more diverse job.

Of all of the endangered animals, it is manatees I want to see removed from the list the most. Manatees have no natural enemies. They are gentle to all other species. There are absolutely no negative impacts to humans. They are well adapted to their natural environment which, if it wasn't for humans, their species could continue seemingly forever. They have been protected by law for more than 100 years. If us humans can't bring them back to levels to remove them from the endangered lists, how can we bring other species back that have some negative. Plus it seems like it should be simple... reducing boat speeds along the coastal waters and rivers and don't use fish nets in such areas. Unfortunately, the average person does not think about such things.

There is a place just north of Cape Canaveral called Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge. I had a visitor from Germany and was showing her places in late October. We went to the refuge, which is known primarily for the number of bird species it gets in winter. (I believe more than any other place in the U.S..) When we went, there was only one flock of birds, probably the first for the season. (A couple of people were observing the flock through high powered binoculars on a tripod, while taking lots of notes.) There are other animals as well, such as alligators. There is even a Manatee Observation Deck in a manmade channel going through the island. So we went there, but I was not expecting to see any manatees. The waters were still extremely warm. But, to my surprise, we did see manatees... many. You could only see them from time to time as they came up for air. And you could usually only see their noses. Sometimes you could see their backs (which usually had cuts, but nothing serious). Although we could not see them beneath the water, I suspect they could see us (and the other people) very well and were probably enjoying it. (They are very curious animals.) That is the first time I have seen manatees in the wild. Unfortunately, I also saw some boaters still moving too fast in the same channel.

In the winter, it is easy to see manatees in Florida. You just go to springs. (My favorite is Homosassa Springs north of Tampa.) That is how manatees stay warm in the winter. You can often see a couple of hundred that way. Technically, that is also seeing them in the wild. But these are usually part of state parks that charge admission. So I can't get myself to call them "wild".

Haven't gotten to Crystal River (Homosassa) yet myself, but if you are in Tampa you can go to TECO (the electric company) where manatees gather in a tributary next to the plant where warm water discharge increases the water temperature and attracts lots of manatees. These are "wild" manatees. I've been there a few times and taken many photos.

Captivity-wise, the exhibit at Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa is pretty good.

and Mote Marine Aquarium in Sarasota usually has a few, mostly in isolation tanks to help them recover from illnesses or injuries.

but my favorite manatee is Snooty. He was born in captivity back in the 1940s and is the oldest manatee ever at age 56! He now lives in his own aquarium in Bradenton with a younger manatee named Newton.

Also - in Dallas, the Dallas World Aquarium has 2 Venezuelan manatees too. I visit them about once a year.

i swam with the manatees in Homosassa Springs last christmas and it was unbelievable. i wanna go back soon. i have some pictures, but i dont have a place to post them.

i tihnk its interesting how manatees and whales evolved at the smae time and look alot alike but whales cant go betweeen fresh and salt water and manatees can. im intrigued by simple things.

For Christmas I got a Vintage Beany Baby, it's name is Manny, and it's a weird looking manatee! It looks more like a Dugong! I promise i'll show you guys the manatees soon!

My Signature has a manatee!

I got Manny sometime last year lol He's really cute!

Anyway, back on the topic of manatees, I really really love manatees and dugongs! They are one of my favourite marine animals. Living in England and not really going abroad a lot I haven't had any encounters with them at the moment but I'm hoping that I will in the future. I'd love to swim with them! And yes, I agree with Jay, manatees are one of the endangered animals I'd most like to see off the list too. If humans weren't so ignorant then they'd be fine.

Yes, I does appear to be a manatee on you signature,Scott.
Okay, I expect to upload the pictures soon!