Grassy Key, FL… A severely injured manatee was rescued from the waters around Ocean Reef Wednesday afternoon by Dolphin Research Center’s Manatee Rescue Team. Concerned residents noticed the animal with a deep wound on its back and alerted Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWCC). After examining the manatee on the boat, DRC’s Medical Director Pat Clough reports that the injuries indicate a boat strike. “The wound is about a week old and consistent with those made by the skeg on a boat motor,” she says. “Additional internal injuries resulted in a pneumothorax. The pneumothorax creates air in the body cavity which makes it impossible for the animal to submerge for very long.” The manatee, which weighed an estimated 800 to 900 pounds, was lifted from the rescue boat onto a truck with Ocean Reef residents and Allied Marine employees assisting the DRC team. It was then transported to Miami Seaquarium for treatment.
Upon further examination, including an ultrasound, Seaquarium veterinarian Dr. Maya Menchaca determined that the female manatee is in the advanced stages of pregnancy and could give birth any day. The animal most likely has broken ribs, but both lungs are functioning. Oral antibiotics were administered and the manatee will be monitored around the clock.
“This manatee is extremely lucky that people of Ocean Reef spotted its compromised state. Without help, the injuries would eventually have proved fatal,” Clough explains. “The animal is in extremely serious condition, but now is receiving excellent care and has a better chance of survival.”
If you see an entangled, injured or orphaned manatee, call the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission at 1-888-404-FWCC (3922). That is the first step in launching a response from a trained team. Dolphin Research Center is the only Manatee Rescue Team in the Florida Keys authorized by the state and federal governments to aid manatees in distress. DRC is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting peaceful coexistence, cooperation and communication between marine mammals and humans and the environment through research and education. Located on the Overseas Highway at mile marker 59, Grassy Key, the center has been home to bottlenose dolphins and sea lions since 1984 and is an accredited member of the Alliance of Marine Mammal Parks and Aquariums. For more information, call 305-289-1121.
