ORLANDO, Fla. — November is Manatee Awareness Month, and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) wants to remind boaters to be on the lookout for manatees as they start to travel to warmer water.
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“As fall temperatures drop, manatees start making their way to Florida springs, power plant discharge areas and other warm-water sites to overwinter until temperatures rise again in the spring,” said Michelle Pasawicz, FWC Manatee Management Program Coordinator. “Manatees need access to water warmer than 68 degrees Fahrenheit to survive.”
Boat strikes are one of the major threats to Florida manatees.
Despite their size, manatees can be hard to see in the water - boaters can better spot manatees by wearing polarized glasses, going slow and abiding by all manatee protection zones, FWC officials said.
During colder months, seasonal manatee zones require boaters and personal watercraft users to reduce speed in or avoid certain areas to prevent collisions that can injure or kill manatees. Manatee protection zones are marked by waterway signs; maps of these zones are available HERE. MyFWC.com/MPZ
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FWC officials said it important to give the manatees space as they gather in warmer waters, because disturbing manatees can cause them to swim out of protected areas and into potentially life-threatening cold water.
Manatees are a protected species, and it is illegal to harass, feed, disturb or harm them.
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If you see an injured, distressed, sick or dead manatee, report it to the FWC’s Wildlife Alert Hotline at 888-404-FWCC (3922).
Do not try to physically handle an injured or sick manatee yourself, which can cause more harm to the animal and potentially put you at risk of serious injury.
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