Manatee

Zion Country Eco-beach Cabins, home of the Manatees. A family of 4 Manatees have frequently visited Eco-Zion Country for the last seven years. Here in Eco-Zion Country, we have been keeping a survey for the last 4 years on how often they visit the harbor and under which weather conditions.

There are fewer than 3000 West-Indian Manatees around the globe. Manatees are mammals weighing between 500 and 1000 kg. and are not dangerous to humans. They drink fresh water and feed on sea grasses.


The reason Manatees come into Manchioneal harbor and close to Zion Country Eco-beach Cabins is because of the fresh water flowing from the Drivers River and Reach Falls and out in front of Zion Country Eco-beach Cabins into the Manchioneal harbor. If you are lucky you can swim or even touch the Manatees or just observe them while snorkeling. The most common months that you can see Manatees at Zion Country Eco-beach Cabins are February until October.
Manatee Survey

West Indian Manatee

(Trichechus manatus)

What weights over 1000 pounds, looks a bit like a walrus with wrinkled, gray-brown, spongy skin, is sometimes called a "sea cow", is related to an elephant, was mistaken for mermaids, can eat more than 100 pounds of vegetables per day, and travels an average of 3 to 5 miles per hour? Why the manatee, of course!

These large animals were once thought to be related to walrus because of the way they look. Today, scientists are able to identify animals using genetics. Now they know that manatees are more closely related to elephants than any other living animal. Scientists believe that manatees evolved from land mammals that returned to an aquatic life.

Manatees are large marine mammals weighing up to 2000 pounds and reaching more than 12 feet in length. Like whales, their large bodies can only be supported in their watery environment. On land, their body weight would crush their internal organs. Manatees are the only marine mammals that are herbivores. Just to keep their big bodies warm, they have to eat up to one tenth of their body weight every day. For the typical manatee that means more than 100 pounds of water plants! That's equal to more than 200 heads of lettuce!

Warm Water Mammals

Keeping warm is a real problem for these animals. Their cylindrical bodies help conserve heat, but they don't have the blubber that other marine mammals do. Their metabolism is also very low, so they don't generate a lot of body heat. As a result, they can get sick when the water temperature falls below 70° F. In cold water, they can develop pneumonia, get too sluggish to eat, and can die. Most manatees live in warm, tropical waters, but Florida manatees live in sub-tropical waters that get below 70° F in the winter months (Dec. through Mar.).
Manatees have a behavior which helps them survive the colder water. In the winter, they seek out the natural warm springs of Florida's coastal rivers. They even gather where electric power plants discharge warm water. To protect manatees, many of these areas are now Manatee Sanctuaries.

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