The state of Florida, USA, has just had to strengthen its program to support manatees in an effort to coordinate with conservation groups, to find a way to save this large marine mammal from the tragedy of starvation because of its favorite food. Their favorites, the seagrass beds in the area, are seriously disappearing.
The Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission has launched a major rescue campaign to help manatees. Manatees are currently facing unusual deaths, most likely due to a lack of seagrass. They often graze on seagrasses in the lagoon north of Cape Canaveral on the east coast of Florida.
Seagrasses are the main natural food source for manatees
A notice noted that algae blooms in the lagoon in recent years have killed seagrasses, leaving manatees without food. According to the Guardian, the area of seagrass beds today has decreased by nearly 200 square kilometers compared to 2009, leaving the 7,500 manatees in the state without any valuable main food source.
To prevent starvation, conservation groups regularly distribute lettuce (mostly romaine) as a seagrass substitute for manatees. At a press conference on February 22, officials said they would increase the amount of vegetables to more than 9 tons per week. So far, manatees are very fond of the substitute.
According to Florida statistics, in the first half of 2021 alone, 841 manatees died, from the beginning of 2022 so far, more than 300 manatees have died. This February, a rescue team rescued six manatees. Those that are too sick to live in the wild (due to injury, starvation, or some other reason) are taken to a nursery to recuperate and then released.
The manatee feeding program started last year but is now expected to continue through the end of March. However, feeding thousands of manatees with vegetables is not a long-term plan to restore their populations.
Manatees were reclassified from endangered to threatened in 2017, leaving them with fewer legal protections. Unless water quality improves in the manatee’s habitat, their troubles will persist.
Reference: Gizmodo