Fewer Manatee Deaths in 2012, but Threats Remain

Unlike a lot of other endangered species, the Florida manatee didn't have all that bad a year in 2012. Only 392 manatees were found dead in Florida last year ( pdf ), according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. This figure is a drop from 453 in 2011 ( pdf ) and well below the record high of 766 in 2010 ( pdf ). Florida has been tracking manatee deaths since 1974 , when the population was maybe 20 percent what it is today and the state recorded just seven fatalities. Numbers of both manatees and fatalities steadily rose through the ensuing decades; last year's deaths are slightly below the annual average for this century. Today an estimated 4,000 to 5,000 manatees currently swim in the waters around Florida and, more rarely, surrounding states.Florida's manatees are a subspecies of the West Indian manatee ( Trichechus manatus ) and have been federally protected since 1967, predating the Endangered Species Act. The International Union for Conservation of Nature lists the subspecies ( T. m. latirostris ) as "endangered," citing a population of fewer than 2,500 mature individuals and predicted declines of at least 20 percent over the next 40 years due to changes in habitat and increased boat traffic. [More]