Was that a sea potato?
by Maria Laukaitis, Lead Field Instructor & Teaching Specialist
Up to 1,000 pounds, up to 10 feet long, and eating about 150 pounds of food a day… is this a large and terrifying predator? Nope! It is none other than the adorably round and lovable sea cow, the Florida manatee!
We are lucky to see these sea potatoes quite often, from our MarineLab boats, in our boat basin, and sometimes in the water with us during a snorkel. Our instructors and students are all number one fans of this marine mammal and all have favorite memorable encounters to share.
Manatees are attracted to fresh water and often are found in our boat basin when it’s wash down time for the boats! It is illegal to attract manatees on purpose with fresh water, though!
Instructor Riley says that she will never forget when she was snorkeling in the water with the group of students and they stumbled upon a manatee munching on some seagrass. This manatee was so focused on its seagrass meal that it did not pay any mind to the students and instructors floating close by. And this moment was even more incredible because moments later a curious bottlenose dolphin swam by the group! Riley says that “this was one of my first experiences snorkeling in Florida Bay, and after hundreds more and a year later, it will always be one of my favorites”.
Instructor Pat recalls his favorite manatee experience of snorkeling with students in our lagoon when a mama and baby manatee snuck in to surprise them with a visit! Because the students stayed calm and respectful, the manatee pair stuck around for 15 minutes so everyone was able to get a look. Pat says that the best part was learning that baby manatees communicate with their mom through adorable little squeaks! None of the staff or students had heard these before because it is such a rare occurrence to be in the water with a baby manatee.
Mama and baby, visiting the lagoon
As for my own favorite manatee encounters, it is incredibly hard to choose! But one memorable moment involved a very curious, bold, and probably hungry sea cow. As with most of our manatee stories, I was floating with students over seagrass beds and close to the mangrove coastline in Florida Bay. We had come across a manatee nose deep in the mangrove roots munching on algae. As I turned away to tell my students they could drift over to quietly take a look, I felt a tug on my fins. I looked over to see the previously algae-focused manatee had switched to nibbling on my fins! After a few seconds of whiskered nibbles the manatee decided this was not the ideal meal and floated off. It was one of the funniest and most unique manatee experiences I have ever had.
Just think of all the amazing manatee stories still waiting out there for our MarineLab students and instructors!
Snorkelers are told to be cautious and give them lots of space if a manatee decides to join them.