Red Tides Causing Manatee Mortalities

Featured Image Credit: US Fish and Wildlife Service
By Sarah Sharkey

Manatee deaths this year were at a high 538 overall deaths. This number only trails 830 in 2013 and 766 in 2010. Two of the larger contributing factors to this was red tide and boating deaths.

Boating accounting for 106. According to Katie Tripp, Save the Mantatee Club, this number could be lower if people paid attention. She said, “ What I’m really focused on is trying to understand how many of those 106 were absolutely pure accidents where everybody was abiding by the law versus how many were hit when people just weren’t paying attention.”

Image Credit: Wall Street OTC Image

Red tide deaths also contributed significantly to manatee deaths this year. According to Michelle Kerr, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s manatee management program, there were 63 red tide deaths in Southwestern Florida.

Red tide is an algal bloom that is harmful to anyone or anything near it. It releases a neurotoxin that causes death in fish, marine mammals, sea turtles, and more. It also causes respiratory problems for humans. Kerr said, “The manatees are effected through red tide by ingesting seagrass, where the toxin has built up, and through the air. The primary route is through sea grass where the red tide algae has built up on the seagrass.”

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