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In addition, if supplemental feeding is able to keep any number of manatees out of rehabilitation centers and in their natural environment, more room will be available for injured or sick individuals from other areas of the state.
#MANATEE PREDATORS TRIAL#
The small-scale feeding trial is designed to reduce manatee mortality while providing data on how future supplemental trials may affect larger populations. Enter: FWC’s unprecedented supplemental feeding trial. Unfortunately, the manatees this winter need a quicker solution. Planting new meadows is crucial to correcting the damage done to the lagoon, but will take years to make a sizeable impact. Daniel Maltz, and 150+ other individual donors, raised $240,000 to replant seven beds in the lagoon where water quality allows.
#MANATEE PREDATORS PRO#
Our Foundation, thanks to Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s Outdoor Fund, the Coastal Conservation Association, the Coypu Foundation, the Arthur L. Previously lush meadows have turned into deserts.Ĭountless agencies and organizations like Florida’s Department of Environmental Protection, Sea & Shoreline, and Bonefish & Tarpon Trust have dedicated funds and operations to heal the lagoon. Algae blooms block sunlight from reaching the grass, stopping photosynthesis and killing the plants. The seagrass-based coastal estuary has been ravaged by nutrient pollution, resulting in toxic algae blooms. Sadly, the Indian River Lagoon is in an ecological crisis. Seagrass beds serve as nurseries for juvenile fish, habitats for clams and shrimp, and underwater filtration systems, adding oxygen to the water. These grasses are not only a manatee snack, they’re imperative to support healthy water quality and ecosystems for a number of species. The waterways of the Indian River Lagoon are a popular winter haven thanks to the Florida Power & Light’s (FPL) Cape Canaveral Clean Energy Center and previously lush seagrass and eelgrass meadows, a major food source. But in colder months, manatees follow migratory patterns, returning to springs and power plants where the water is warmer. When water temperatures are above 68 degrees, manatees can be found throughout the state. While manatees have no natural predators, their population in Florida is threatened by boat strikes, red tide, and, most recently, starvation.