Officials from wildlife are bringing in 20,000 pounds each week of Florida-grown lettuce to feed starving manatees at the Indian River Lagoon. This is in an effort to reduce the impact of a historic, ongoing die-off.
Sarah Barrett, a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission staffer, stated that the produce has cost approximately $18,000 since December. She stated that the majority of the cost was covered by donations from Florida’s Fish and Wildlife Foundation of Florida. The pace Since Jan. 20, when the manatees first started to eat the lettuce the pace has accelerated.
Scientists consider this day a breakthrough in efforts to feed and rescue manatees this winter, but more animals are becoming sicker or dead around the epicenter for the crisis, Brevard county, and beyond.
According to the Conservation Commission, 97 manatees were reported dead in Florida as of Jan. 28, which is well above the average for the period before 2020’s die-off. As of February 4, there had been 20 manatee rescues in Florida. Statistics on mortalityThey are published once per week, and the numbers were not updated Wednesday morning.
According to Tom Reinert, spokesperson for the joint response team to the manatee crisis (a collaboration between the Conservation Commission & the U.S.), the death toll will rise in the next update. Fish and Wildlife Service. According to the state, manatees that were emaciated have been rescued in Satellite Beach and Riviera Beach within the last week.
Manatees have been starving since they don’t have enough seagrass to eat at Indian River Lagoon. This is a typical wintering area near power plants and warm discharges. The ecosystem has been destroyed by pollution-fueled algal blooms, which have decimated thousands of acres of seagrasses from areas where they once thrived.
Reinert said that even though this area is at the heart of the die-offs in Florida, Reinert said that recent rescues show why scientists are concerned for all of Florida’s East Coast.
He said that manatees traveling north and south stop at the lagoon. Manatees that usually shelter there could move to other areas to find food. It is difficult to reverse starvation, and a malnourished or sick manatee may become ill after it leaves.
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The wildlife agencies have only been feeding manatees at one command center on the lagoon. Reinert indicated that anywhere from 50-800 manatees have been seen there, depending upon the weather.
Officials aren’t ready to declare this experimental feeding trial a win or to expand it. Similar experiments have never been attempted before.
Reinert said that they have only been feeding manatees a few weeks. It was difficult to get them to eat. He stated that it was too early to know if the lettuce has reduced the death and rescue rates.
Florida saw more than 1,000 manatee deaths in 2021, making it the worst year for record.
Repairing the damage to the Indian River Lagoon could take many years. The seagrass will not grow back overnight, and the environment’s health will depend on people who reduce pollution.
Reinert spoke of the government’s emergency response and said that he believed well likely have to do it again next winter.
If we can save a handful of animals from starvation, then every one who lives in the wild is a success.
A manatee in dire need?
Anyone who observes a manatee in distress, sick, injured, entangled orphaned or dying should immediately report it to the states Wildlife Alert HotlineCall 1-888-404-3922.
Tips to safely view manatees
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission advises that manatees are not to be touched, chased or fed. You could be harassing or violating their rights. You should give manatees space in the wild if you come across them. If you see one in the wild, don’t make too much noise or splash. This can scare them.
