Florida manatees deserve strong protections

Manatees are far from well. These huge, gentle “sea cows” can grow longer than 13 feet long from snout to tail, and the biggest among them weigh more than 3,500 pounds. 

But their size offers no protection from starvation, which is happening as their seagrass is choked off from algal blooms caused by water pollution. In 2021 and 2022, nearly 2,000 manatees died, more than 20% of the manatees in Florida.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conducted status reviews and proposed to list the Antillean manatee (residing in Puerto Rico and the Carribean) as “endangered” – the more protective status – but to keep the Florida manatee, despite its high mortalities, as threatened. 

While we’re pleased to see the stronger proposal for the Antillean manatee, we asked the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to classify the Florida manatee as endangered, given the unusual number of deaths and the ongoing threats and die-off of seagrass. More than 25,000 supporters of Environment Florida, Environment America and its state groups, and Environmental Action chimed in with the same request during a recent public comment period. 

As our followers said in their comments: 

“Granting the Florida manatee “endangered” status under the Endangered Species Act would provide vital protection to these incredible animals and the critical habitat they need to survive. With hundreds of manatees dying off each year, they need the strongest protections now if they are going to survive and thrive for years to come.”