Also known as the “Sea Cow” , the Florida manatee, is a gentle giant that inhabits the warm and tranquil waters of the Indian River Lagoon, feeding on seagrass and other marine vegetation.
From children to senior citizens, all of our passengers aboard the Blue Dolphin love encounters with the manatee. Throughout our Port Canaveral tour, you’ll likely see at least one pod of manatees. One of the most frequent hangouts for manatees is the Canaveral lock system. Weighing up to 3,300 pounds and measuring as long as 12 feet, Florida Manatees are the largest of the Sirenia species. For decades, the manatee was classified as an endangered species, but two years ago the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that the West Indian manatee population of Florida advised that the species be reclassified as “threatened” rather than “endangered.”
Many of Brevard County’s riverside residents know one of the easiest ways to lure manatees to their dock: leave a hose with running water at the end of the dock. Should you enjoy the good fortune of encountering a manatee while you’re on a boat, be sure to cruise at a speed that doesn’t produce wake. Manatees are unable to move fast enough to escape the dangerous blades of a boat propeller.
According to ecofloridamag.com, the Manatee is able to hold their breath for up to 15 minutes while resting, manatees have huge lungs that exchange 98% of their contents in one breath. Their life span is approximately 40 years and after female manatees reach breeding age (usually between the age of three-to-six) they give birth to a calf every two and a half to three years. The first manatee fossil in Florida was discovered in 1929.
