Maret 01, 2017
narrator >> on a lovely december morning,i set out with captain stacy dunn on her three-hour manatee tour in kings bay, florida. my hope is that we'll have a chance to swimnear at least one of the area's enormous aquatic mammals, and the chances of this happening are excellent. though some endangered florida manatees arepresent in kings bay's spring-fed waters year-round, between roughly mid-november and late marcheach year, their numbers swell to around 500. the species, a sub-species of the west indianmanatee, come to escape the gulf of mexico's
chilly waters, and their presence is all about survival. captain stacy >> they can get hypothermiaand cold stress if they're in cold water, so they have to come here and stay in thewarm springs, which are 72 degrees (fahrenheit). that's what mother earth keeps them at. narrator >> we get our first glimpse of thesegigantic creatures on the outskirts of one of the seven manatee sanctuaries that provide critical habitat within the kingsbay manatee refuge. during peak season, people aren't allowedwithin these sanctuaries.
we are, however, allowed to swim in threesisters springs, a complex of three spring areas and the mostpopular place for manatee encounters. here, the manatees are visible as soon aswe enter the water, initially trailing our movements and thencontinuing swiftly beneath us towards the springs. as i make my way through the passage leadingto the springs, a mother and calf also swim past. at birth, calves weigh about 30 kilos.heavy, yes, but not so much for creatures that average over 540 kilos and can weighover 1500 kilograms. captain stacy >> the ones in the wild thathave to fend for themselves,
their top weight when we do health assessments,which mike and i are very involved in, is around 2200 pounds. narrator >> as we reach the springs, the watersbecome magnificently clear, revealing several resting individuals whorise occasionally to breath. although manatees can hold their breath forup to 20 minutes, they usually surface every 3-5 minutes. heeding stacey's directions, we remain onthe water's surface, calmly observing these beauties. federal and state laws protect this species,and disturbing or touching a resting manatee is prohibited throughout the refuge.
quite a few other activities are also offlimits, including chasing, riding, pinching, poking, cornering, and surrounding them. while most of the 15 or so manatees presentin this section of the springs are either resting or otherwise disinterested in ourpresence, a few are quite friendly. we're not supposed to initiate contact,but some extroverts have no qualms about checking us out fully. their antics allow me to get a good look attheir flippers, which have 3-4 fingernails, as well as their muscular lips, which arecapable of manipulating food.
the cheeky vegetarians seem to smile at times,but their grins aren't toothy. captain stacy >> they have teeth, but they'recalled rotating molars and they sit way back in their jaw bone, so you'll never be able to see them. narrator >> eventually, one manatee nuzzlesme -- an amazing experience, at first. when it pulls my hair, though, i'm remindedthat these gentle but wild animals are potentially powerful, and, while the 'no contact' recommendationis intended to protect the manatees, it probably benefits their human visitorsas well. whether resting or active, these adorable,funny mermaids are indeed mesmerising,
and i leave the water on a natural high. and though some might classify this as a 'once-in-a-lifetime'sort of experience, given the tour's reasonable price, i'mseriously tempted to come along again tomorrow.
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