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| Popularly known as the "sea
cow," the manatee (manatâ) once ranged in habitat from Florida
to Brazil. Europeans swiftly exterminated the creatures in the southern
Caribbean. The last sighting in Trinidad was in 1910 when one was
harpooned. Manateees move along the ocean floor (at a maximum pace
of six mph) searching for food, surfacing every four or five minutes
to breathe. Surprisingly, as the manatee's nearest living relative
is the elephant, the creature was thought to be the model for the
legend of the mermaid „ perhaps because of the mother's habit of sheltering
her offspring with her flipper as the infant feeds. Weighing between
400 and 1,300 lbs., the pudgy creature is covered with finely wrinkled
grey or brown skin decorated with barnacles and algae; it may reach
12 ft. in length. Although to you they might appear ugly with their
small eyes, thick lips, bristly muzzles, and wrinkled necks, they
are affectionate with one another, kissing and sometimes swimming
flipper-to-flipper. Dwelling in lagoons and in brackish water, manatees
may eat as much as 100 lbs. of aquatic vegetables per day. Strictly
vegetarian, their only enemy is man, who has hunted them for their
hide, oil, and meat. Once ranging from South America up to North Carolina,
their numbers have dwindled dramatically. In other localities, their
tough hides were used in machine belting and in high pressure hoses.
In Central America, Belizeans have widely and incorrectly believed
that manatee flesh holds special properties and comes in a variety
of flavors. Although community education may be the key to stopping
hunting, propellor blades of motor boats continue to slaughter manatees
accidentally, and the careless use of herbicides is also a threat. |
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