Sunday, January 02, 2011

Manatees 2





I wasn't going to share more photos of manatees again today, but since they are an endangered species, I felt that I should share a couple of observations made while photographing these interesting mammals at Manatee Park in Fort Myers, Florida.

The first two images show an individual with several scars and a large cut through its tail. No doubt these injuries were caused by the propellers of a boat. The third image shows a young manatee surfacing near two adults to take a breath of air and the others shows a group of manatees just floating near the surface. Imagine a boat coming by just as the manatees surface to breathe! An interpreter at the park told me that most of the adult manatees he sees have scars caused by the propellers of boats and that is one of the leading causes of death among the manatee population.

I believe the state of Florida posts warning signs to advise boaters to slow down because large manatees that can weigh as much as 1000 pounds may be floating in the water. If boaters would slow down and keep their eyes open, the number of manatee/boat collisions would probably decrease.

Photos of the Day are for sale as stock photographs
and photographic enlargements.
They can also be purchased as slide shows
and/or wallpapers/screensavers.

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