What it takes to save a manatee: planes, cranes and cars

The orphans, three baby females, arrived one after another at ZooTampa’s manatee hospital.

The first was found swimming alone in shallow waters, with her umbilical cord still attached. Two months later, another was rescued from a canal. Then came the smallest they’d ever gotten: Manatees would normally weigh about 65 pounds at birth, but this one was only 44 pounds.

Their names were Calliope, Soleil and Piccolina.

It was 2021, a bad year for manatees in Florida. On the state’s east coast, decades of pollution from sewage and fertilizers had led to a massive die-off of seagrass, on which the animals depend for food. Conservationists counted hundreds of emaciated corpses. Elsewhere, other threats persisted, such as boat strikes and poisoning from red tide, a poisonous algae.

No one knows what happened to the mothers of the three babies, who were rescued on the west coast of Florida. Normally, a calf stays with its mother for up to two years, swimming close to one of her fins as it learns where it can find food and which warm water areas it needs to survive cold spells.

“There is clearly trauma,” said Molly Lippincott, who manages Florida species at ZooTampa.

And so, every year, Calliope, Soleil and Piccolina joined the dozens of manatees who receive personalized interventions, similar to ambulance rides, intensive care units and long-term rehabilitation. Some even fly on airplanes before being released back into the wild.

Manatees were among the first animals listed in the Endangered Species Act in 1973, when their population was estimated at about 1,000. Now they have become an example of both the power of conservation and how tenuous its successes can feel. The most recent population estimate, for 2021-2022, is approximately 10,000. Researchers attribute the increase largely to habitat protection and boat speed limits. In 2017, the federal government downgraded Florida’s manatees from threatened to endangered.

But new threats loom.

Climate change and Florida’s growing population are expected to create conditions for an increase in harmful algae blooms a report commissioned by the state. Red tide can kill manatees directly, while other types of algae blooms can choke out the seagrass they need to survive.

Ultimately, the health of the species will depend on treating the root causes of these and other threats. That means we need to do things like reduce pollution from leaking septic systems and fertilizer runoff. Last year saw an encouraging recovery of seagrass in the Indian River Lagoon, the epicenter of the 2021 die-off. Conservationists have temporarily halted a supplemental feeding program in the area.

From Florida to Ohio: a temporary home

During their year-plus at ZooTampa, the three babies gained weight nicely. In November 2022, little Piccolina already weighed 375 pounds, Calliope was over 400 pounds and Soleil came in at 475 pounds.

But manatees aren’t released into the wild until they weigh at least 600 pounds, a size that’s thought to give them some padding, so to speak, while they learn to fend for themselves. They gain about a pound a day, so it takes time to gain that much weight. To free up space in the critical pool, manatees are sent to another temporary shelter.

For Calliope, Soleil and Piccolina, that meant traveling a thousand miles to the Cincinnati Zoo.

The zoo, one of three facilities outside Florida that can house manatees that need to grow bigger, is part of a consortium of more than 20 agencies and organizations who work together in the rescue and rehabilitation of manatees.

In Ohio, Calliope, Soleil and Piccolina ate romaine, endive, kale, endive, green leaf lettuce, Chinese cabbage and bok choy. They often gobbled up greenery from containers at the bottom of the tank designed to imitate seagrasses.

Calliope was curious, smart, and a bit of a troublemaker.

“She wants to be involved in all the things that happen in the tank,” said one of her Cincinnati goalies, Remy Romaine.

“You need to be aware,” added another, Tara Lay. “Very involved. No personal space.”

Soleil, in turn, seemed sweet and easy-going, and was eager to fulfill her caregivers’ requests, especially when food was involved. “Our big piece-a-munk,” Mrs. Lay called her.

Piccolina, nicknamed Pickles, seemed a bit shy and stayed close to her adopted sisters. Although manatees are considered only semi-social, the three seemed to take comfort in each other.

Back to Florida: packed like precious cargo

Eleven months flew by.

In the fall of 2023 it was time for them to return to Florida. Only now they were about twice as heavy.

To move a manatee, start by removing it from the water. In Cincinnati, that meant pumping out a medical pool.

Zoo workers used thick straps to physically place each manatee on a tarp-like stretcher with poles that, when hung, formed a sort of hammock. A winch lifts the manatee into a custom-made container lined with eight inches of foam.

The animals were not anesthetized as this could mask a medical emergency or compromise their breathing ability.

It’s unclear how stressed manatees become when they’re lifted through the air in a hammock or placed in a strange, waterless container. But they seem to tolerate such movements well, experts say, and seem surprisingly calm throughout the ordeal. (I really wish I could have interviewed them.)

Manatees’ calm demeanor may be one of the traits that has made them so popular with people, says James Powell, a manatee expert and executive director of the Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute, which is part of the network that rescues and rehabilitates manatees.

“There’s something about them that, I think, instills a sense of peace in people,” said Dr. Powell. “They almost look like Buddha.”

This connection between humans and manatees means the animals receive more attention and funding than many endangered species. Money from the sale of manatee license plates and decals, boat registration fees and donations is funneled into a state trust fund for the species. From July 2021 to June 2022, it has grossed over $4 million.

Zoos pay much of the cost of caring for and rehabilitating manatees while they are in human care. The manatee program at ZooTampa costs about $1 million a year, covered by a combination of ticket sales and government funding.

On to the airport

DHL, the global shipping company, is not in the business of moving animals. But it makes some exceptions to help with conservation efforts, and has become a regular carrier for flying manatees.

Location is an important reason. The company’s national center is only about 30 minutes from the Cincinnati Zoo, and a few hours from the Columbus Zoo, which also rehabilitates manatees.

“You’re part of something else, right?” said Joe Collopy, a senior director at DHL who monitors the animals’ movements. “The goal is for them all to return to where they were. And that makes it special.”

This flight carried the most manatees that DHL had ever flown at once: not just Calliope, Soleil and Piccolina, but five others from the Columbus Zoo.

Manatee flights include a veterinarian and another manatee keeper who check the animals regularly, looking at their nostrils to make sure they are breathing and spraying them occasionally.

Most manatees rest on their bellies during transport, but Calliope prefers to lie on her back, which is how she flew all the way back to Tampa.

“It’s the temperament of the animals that helps a lot,” said Dr. Jenny Nollman, a veterinarian at the Cincinnati Zoo who was aboard the flight. “They just stay calm and don’t panic.”

But they do something different.

“There is an odor,” said Dr. Nollman. “They are pooping.”

Manatee ticket prices vary depending on weight and amount of other cargo on the flight. For this trip, the Cincinnati Zoo paid about $21,000 for the three of them.

And finally: back to nature

Over the past decade, more than 800 orphaned, sick or injured manatees have been brought to critical care centers. And capacity is expanding: ZooTampa is building two additional medical pools, and SeaWorld Orlando added three last year.

Such efforts require a lot of resources on a small number of manatees, but they also help educate the public about threats to the species, says Roger L. Reep, professor emeritus at the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine, who studies manatees and the like . -wrote a book about it.

“Most people aren’t interested in reading, ‘Oh, we built a new water treatment plant and got rid of 2,000 septic tanks,’” said Dr. Strip. “They don’t understand that this would have more sustainable benefits for a greater number of manatees.”

Ms. Lippincott of ZooTampa said she took comfort in knowing she was part of a larger collective trying to help manatees, with many partners focusing on root causes. And since the animals can live to be 60 years old, a year or two of rehabilitation is more than worth it, she said.

It was a fitting place for the release: Three Sisters Springs.

Calliope went first. A team carried her into the water on one of the sail-like stretchers. She slid in on her back before slowly swimming away.

“Hello Calliope!” called Ms. Lay, who had traveled from Cincinnati to witness the release. “I love you! Please be good.”

The tracking device floated behind Calliope, making her look like the nerdy new kid as she joined the dozens of wild manatees strolling in the warm natural spring.

She swam around the entire perimeter, curious as ever.

An hour later it was Soleil’s turn. The next day, Piccolina’s.

They found each other and gathered for a moment, away from the other manatees. Then they floated apart.