SAVING THE BIG BEND’S MANATEES ONE RESCUE AT A TIME
March 6, 2021
As temperatures dropped in the Big Bend waters over winter, resident manatees that are comfortable in tropical waters began to feel the effects and seek out warmer sites. In December 2020, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, or FWC, notified the University of Florida Marine Animal Rescue, or UF MAR, headquartered in Cedar Key and at UF, that a young satellite-tagged manatee named Carmen was needing rescue in the Suwannee River. This juvenile manatee was not moving to warm water and had been rescued on two separate occasions.
In February 2018, Carmen was rescued alongside her injured mother who, unfortunately, succumbed to her injuries. She was five feet long and weighed only 148 pounds. She was taken to SeaWorld Orlando’s Manatee Critical Care Center for her initial therapy and then was transferred to Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, where she received excellent, long-term care and was able to grow to a minimum size before being reintroduced back to the wild. By February 2020, she weighed 690 pounds, making her a candidate for release. She was satellite tagged by Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute so researchers could keep a careful eye on her whereabouts, periodically checking on her in person as she learned how to use the environment. 
During the winter months, manatees need to find their way to warmer waters as they cannot survive in water below 70 degrees Fahrenheit. This is why you see large numbers of manatees in natural springs. As temperatures were nearing the low 50s in Florida, Carmen needed to find a spring before it was too late. Because she was released with a satellite tag the CMA Research Institute’s monitoring team was able to determine her exact location. As time went on, researchers noticed that Carmen was in fact going north, the opposite direction of the local warm water springs. The FWC coordinated a rescue team consisting of its own personnel, veterinarians, staff, and volunteers from UFMAR, Clearwater Marine Aquarium, Zoo Tampa, and Cedar Key Dolphin Research Project.
With all of these partners working together, Carmen’s rescue was in great hands. The team deployed out of Fowlers Bluff on December 18th, 2020, and located Carmen in the Suwannee River. Once she was found and brought onto FWC’s rescue boat, a large boat strike wound was discovered at the base of her tail. Due to this injury, UFMAR’s veterinarian, Dr. Mike Walsh advised that she be transported to SeaWorld for further evaluation and rehabilitation instead of being re-released into Three Sisters Springs that day. Carmen underwent two months of rehabilitation, allowing for the wound to heal and gain some additional weight. We are ecstatic to say that Carmen was released into Three Sisters Springs on February 16th, 2021. We wish Carmen the best of luck on her journey and hope she lives a safe and happy life!
The rescue, rehabilitation, and release process is a team effort and it could not have been done without the help of multiple network partners and the many Big Bend boaters and volunteers. The goal of the Southeast stranding network and our three counties is to return these animals back into their natural habitat when possible and learn why they strand and what may be changing in the environment. We need your help to do it well in Levy, Dixie, and Taylor counties. So, if you see an animal in distress in one of these counties, please call our 24/7 Stranding Hotline at (352) 477-0344. If you are not in one of these counties but would like to report an animal, call the FWC Wildlife Alert Hotline at 1-888-404-3922. Thank you so much for your dedication to the aquatic wildlife that surrounds our area; we could not do what we do without you!
The UFMAR Team Suzanna Mickey, Hannah Walsh, Mike Walsh, Laurie Adler, and Dana Lanier and all our volunteers.
(All manatee efforts and photos conducted under FWS permit MA770191)
Hannah Walsh
Stranding Biologist
UF Marine Animal Rescue
College of Veterinary Medicine
Stranding Hotline: 352.477.0344
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