Featured Image Credit: SeaWorld
The SeaWorld Team was on a rescue roll this week in Charleston, South Carolina. Four stranded manatees were spotted swimming close to the warm outflow from the KapStone paper mill. Officials from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services, NOAA, and the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources were also on the scene.
Once the water temperatures reach below 68 º, it’s typical for manatee to migrate to warmer water, thus why the manatees found comfort near the warm outflow. The KapStone papermill sits just up the Cooper River, which empties into the Charleston Harbor. When the manatees made their way up the river toward the paper mill, this isolated them from natural food sources.
Thankfully KapStone officials were up to date on wildlife protocol and monitored the manatees while the SeaWorld Rescue Team made the trek to Charleston.
The first rescue operation successfully recovered one male and one female manatee. Both mammals were healthy enough to be immediately relocated to the warm waters of Brevard County near Port St. John. The male, who was previosuly named Goose, is actually no stranger to the Sea to Shore Alliance and did not receive a tag. The female however was tagged, and both were released at 9pm.
Up bright and early the next day for rescue round 2, the team was once again successful in rescuing 2 male manatees. Sea to Shore Alliance tagged the larger of the sea cows and safely returned them to Port St. John around 6pm.
A fifth manatee was spotted but remained stubborn and evaded the rescue attempts. If you happen to see this seacow, please call the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources at: 843-953-9360 or 1-800-922-5431 or report to the agency’s manatee sighting website: http://www.dnr.sc.gov/manatee/sight.htm.
It’s no surprise the SeaWorld Rescue team was on the scene ASAP, with nearly 30,000 rescues in the last 50 years, vigilance is practically tradition. SeaWorld’s goal for every rescued animal is to rehabilitate and return them to their natural environment as soon as possible. SeaWorld is apart of the Manatee Rescue and Rehabilitation partnership, meaning they are an acute care facility that provides life-saving medical care to rescued manatees.
This year, reports have actually shown an increase in the struggling manatee populations. With red tides and speeding boats, manatees have faced a lot of challenges over the past decade.
We’re happy to see SeaWorld has these marine mammals backs!