Manatee population record
Manatee population record, There's some very promising news for one of Florida's endangered species: the latest count shows manatees are being counted at record high numbers.
With round bodies and paddle-shaped tails, manatees are one of Florida's most beloved creatures. Perhaps, they're most adored in Citrus County.
"We may be the manatee capital of the world," said Michael Mancke, general manager of the plantation on Crystal River.
A big chunk of business there comes from visitors wanting to swim with sea cows.
"In the summertime, we have a lot of manatees in this area," Mancke said. "We do promote the no-touch, we do promote passive interaction. We've got great new numbers so it's working."
Florida Fish and Wildlife counted 6,063 manatees statewide in February, topping the previous 2010 record high by almost 1,000.
Officials note that the conditions were near-perfect for the count. Warm weather between cold spells brought manatees to the surface and calm water made them easy to spot.
It's only a minimum count, so the state population could be even higher.
"These are numbers to celebrate," said Ivan Vicente of U.S. Fish and Wildlife service in Citrus County. "It looks like what's out there is working. The protection areas, the sanctuaries, the protection the manatees are being given in the state of Florida are effective."
The latest statewide count found 1.025 manatees in the water of citrus county -- that's 17 percent of the entire state. The word being used to describe it is "thriving."
This report comes just a week after peer, a Washington D.C.-based environmental group filed an intent to sue U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service unless they ended those "swim with the manatee" programs that are only legal in citrus county.
The group says the tours violate several protection acts. Armed with this new data, FWS says it plans do what's necessary to continue in-water recreation as long as those acts aren't compromised.
"The guided operator should always have a person in the water with the customers," Vicente said. "The most important measure will be a set a limited number of people at Tone time. A threshold on that can guarantee there is not going to be a significant impact just by the sheer volume of people at one time in the springs."
These numbers are still considered preliminary. But, to give you an idea of how far we've come, 20 years ago, FWC counted around 1,800 manatees statewide. This year's count shows that number has more than tripled over two decades.
With round bodies and paddle-shaped tails, manatees are one of Florida's most beloved creatures. Perhaps, they're most adored in Citrus County.
"We may be the manatee capital of the world," said Michael Mancke, general manager of the plantation on Crystal River.
A big chunk of business there comes from visitors wanting to swim with sea cows.
"In the summertime, we have a lot of manatees in this area," Mancke said. "We do promote the no-touch, we do promote passive interaction. We've got great new numbers so it's working."
Florida Fish and Wildlife counted 6,063 manatees statewide in February, topping the previous 2010 record high by almost 1,000.
Officials note that the conditions were near-perfect for the count. Warm weather between cold spells brought manatees to the surface and calm water made them easy to spot.
It's only a minimum count, so the state population could be even higher.
"These are numbers to celebrate," said Ivan Vicente of U.S. Fish and Wildlife service in Citrus County. "It looks like what's out there is working. The protection areas, the sanctuaries, the protection the manatees are being given in the state of Florida are effective."
The latest statewide count found 1.025 manatees in the water of citrus county -- that's 17 percent of the entire state. The word being used to describe it is "thriving."
This report comes just a week after peer, a Washington D.C.-based environmental group filed an intent to sue U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service unless they ended those "swim with the manatee" programs that are only legal in citrus county.
The group says the tours violate several protection acts. Armed with this new data, FWS says it plans do what's necessary to continue in-water recreation as long as those acts aren't compromised.
"The guided operator should always have a person in the water with the customers," Vicente said. "The most important measure will be a set a limited number of people at Tone time. A threshold on that can guarantee there is not going to be a significant impact just by the sheer volume of people at one time in the springs."
These numbers are still considered preliminary. But, to give you an idea of how far we've come, 20 years ago, FWC counted around 1,800 manatees statewide. This year's count shows that number has more than tripled over two decades.
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Manatee population record
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