Slow Down For Manatees And Mermaids!

Featured Image Credit: Carlton Ward Jr.  
By Sarah Sharkey 

Manatee season is in full swing in Florida and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission(FWC) is urging boaters to slow down.

The initiation of “Operation Mermaid” has been formed to ensure that no manatees are injured by boats this season. “Operation Mermaid” is a multi-agency effort to protect manatees from boat strikes,

The name mermaid comes from the legend that early explorers to the new world thought that manatees were actually mermaids!

The operation includes stricter enforcement of the boating speed limits by local police that patrol waterways. The West Palm Beach police department is one of the agencies stepping up to protect our manatees.

Image Credit: Kevin Meerschaert

Officer Mickey Allen of the department had this to say, “We don’t want anybody speeding where they shouldn’t be. They could not only hit manatee, but hurt themselves as well.”

One potential problem for manatees this year is that Hurricane Irma knocked down many of the boating speed limit signs. Although the hurricane passed through a few months ago, with all the damage many of these signs are still down.

FWC is working hard to replace all the signs, in the meantime officials are advising boaters to wear polarized glasses to help spot a manatee before a collision.

Learn more from our source here.