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Friendly Manatees in Crystal River

• NOTE WELL: Many laws have changed since this article was written...Look up the current rules at: www.fws.gov/ and www.myfwc.com
• Note also: My Children's Book Grant's Book of Manatees and Dolphins is based on this adventure
• Every winter the endangered manatee (sea cow) along with several species of fish escape from cold Gulf waters by swimming up the relatively warm, spring fed, Florida west coast rivers and Power Plant runoffs.Manatees are very gentile vegetarian aquatic animals that inhabit estuaries and shallow seas in a few locations world wide. The manatee indigenous to Florida is the West Indian manatee, which unlike the Pacific's dugong has a single tail lobe, while the dugong's tail (and that of the Steller's Sea Cow before it became extinct in the 1760's) has two lobes like a porpoise. Manatees spend their lives wondering in family groups from estuary to estuary, and in the winter will journey far up spring fed rivers to escape the cold winter. As a result the manatee is often seen in Intercoastal waterways and up canals. One of the easiest places to see these vacationing manatees is in Crystal River, Florida. Located about 3.5 hours south from Tallahassee on Hwy 19, or 2.5 hours north from St. Petersburg (though I recommend the Talahassee trip since this stretch of 19 travels through the sparsely populated Florida Great Bend Region), it is a small town that straddles the clear Crystal River and is only a 30 min boatride from the feeding/sleeping grounds of the manatee. Every winter as the temperature approaches freezing (at night) and 65-80 F in the daytime, the town explodes with divers, snokelers, and wildlife buffs seeking to view and possibly pet one of natures most gentile large creatures. If Crystal River is crazy, consider Homosassa, which is a smaller river, but loaded with manatees also.
• While the manatee is not the prettiest animal (so ugly that it is cute), it is very curious. The first reaction I had to these beasts was of amazement at the size of them (9-15ft). As we sat motionless in the very chilly water on that brisk morning in February (air temp : 33 F, wind chill: 22 F, water temp away from springs:60 F) as still as logs in the very clear water, the first thing we heard was the squeeking sound (very reminiscent of the numerous bottle-nosed dolphins at home) of the waking animals. As the sound rose in intensity we we greeted by the snout of a manatee easily double my length. First he poked my mask an then proceeded to roll over. While this experience is not unusual for these animals, it will be one to never forget.
• What Happens to Injured Manatees? Since coastal development is at a fever pitch in Florida, and since most people who live on the water like to have a boat, the manatees and boats are in constant danger of collision. Also, since most boats use a water screw or prop as a means of propulsion, the prop becomes the most dangerous part of a boat to the manatee. While almost all boat owners in manatee prone areas do excerise caution, some do not, and as a result the Florida Department of Fish and Game, or the Florida Marine Patrol, get a call from a concerned person who has noticed the injured manatee. The Florida Marine Patrol catches the manatee and then takes it to one of several manatee rehabilitation centers or 'manatee hospitals'. Sometimes these manatees can be returned to the wild, while some are retained for breeding and research to help increase the manatees numbers (and get to be very clean, petted lots, and well fed).
• Not only were the manatees plentiful but everywhere around us were both fresh and saltwater fish who had abolutely no fear of us or the manatees, among them: Mangrove (Grey) Snappers, Snook, Tarpon, Jack Crevalle, Sheepshead, Ladyfish, Redear Sunfish, Florida Gar, Spotted Seatrout, Sea Catfish, and Largemouth Bass
• I have since seen manatees in many other locales as well, including Haulover Canal on Merritt Island near Titusville, the Veterans Pier in Titusville, Fort Desoto Park near Tampa, Islamorada and Big Pine Key, Homosassa, and other spots listed here.

• When:

  December-March (The manatee festival is in late February)

• How to:

  While manatees are present through out the summer, spring, and fall months through out southern Florida (Daytona and south on the Atlantic side,Crystal River and south on the Gulf side) in many intercoastal waterways and shallow inland bays and estuaries (The Banana River in Titusville and at Haulover Canal are a very good examples) they are scattered and sometimes very hard to find. In the winter they are far more concentrated around power plants and springs (such as the Three Sisters at Crystal River) and are easily located, as they seek out the warmer water.In the winter it is simply a matter of traveling to a place like CrystalRiver (which hosts one of the largest concentrations in the world in thewinter manatees almost always return to the same wintering spot every yearof their long lives), dropping by any of the dive shops there and signing up for a morning trip. They leave at 7:00AM and will show you exactly what to do and how to dress. For someone who has never snorkeled before, this simply means renting and putting on a full body wet suit (very easy) and renting a mask, snorkel, and fins.  GO to the Rest Room BEFORE SUITING UP!!! The guides will gladly show someone how to use the mask and fins. The boat will take the dressed out client up the river (a 15 minute ride) in a pontoon boat, and then park the boat and give any lessons required. The only trick is learning to breathe out of the snorkel and sitting still long enough not to scare the manatees.(Note it is illegal to chase, feed, or harass manatees.)

• Where:

  Crystal River, Florida (The town and the river)-approximately 100 miles north of Tampa along Florida's Gulf coast. The springs and the town are 10 miles up river from the mouth.

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