Taking a Sidestep Into Marine Biology: The Manatee
by Bryant
Manatees are well known creatures, and are quite popular among today’s public. It’s pretty hard to find the bad side of these peaceful creatures, being that they’re herbivores. As a matter of fact, they can eat up to 100 pounds of under sea vegetation (which would equal about 200 heads of lettuce) a day, yet they still swim 3 to 5 miles an hour. If they do not eat up to one tenth of their body weight a day, they run a high risk of being hurt or dying. They already have a slow metabolism, and without the blubber of other marine mammals, if the water temperature gets below 70 degrees Fahrenheit, they can acquire pneumonia, and die.
If I ate one tenth of my body weight a day, I’d have to eat about 22 pounds of food, or in more fishable terms, 44 double quarter pounders from MacDonald’s a day. Split it up, and I’m eating about 15 for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. That’s an unhealthy amount of meat!
Habitats of this creature range from the western to the eastern hemisphere. A popular habitat would be the southeast coast of the U.S., where the Florida Manatee roams free, and thankfully protected. Check out this short clip of a manatee taking a swim for an afternoon snack. Provided are links from which I got my information, and a few more cool photos! Here’s the link to the video. For a better look, if you have Encarta Encyclopedia, you can get a bigger and better quality video.
http://encarta.msn.com/media_461547789/Manatee_Grazing.html
P.S. Hope you like the calming chords on the acoustic guitar. Sorry it’s so short.
September 10th, 2007 at 5:51 pm
Thats a cool thing on Manatees! They look like swimming hippos! lol
September 10th, 2007 at 6:21 pm
cool. what is really sad is that they keep dying. because they move so slow, boats can kill them before they can get out of the way. they are so cute!
September 10th, 2007 at 7:08 pm
Cool blog, Bryant. Manatees have always been one of my favorite animals. What’s not to love? It never fails to break my heart whenever I hear of one getting hurt by a boat or such. They eat 100 pounds of food a day!?! Wow, I can’t imagine food in such quantities.
September 10th, 2007 at 8:18 pm
oh my!!! That’s a lot of food too eat. That’s also really sad that they have to eat that much or theym ight get hurt or die. Hey aren’t they called sea cows also?
September 10th, 2007 at 11:08 pm
Yes they are called “sea cows”. The sad, gross, illegal, and immoral thing about it is, do you know why they are called “sea cows”? For the weakly constituted, here’s a website with the explanation of the name.
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/mammals/manatee/
HINT: It has to do with living.
September 11th, 2007 at 6:52 am
Ugh, I can’t belive their named that because they tastle like beef! Why would you want to eat one anyways.
September 11th, 2007 at 5:48 pm
That is definently a lot of good to eat…you would think that would make them sick. I guess not though. Where do they actually eat manatees though? I’ve never even heard of that.
September 11th, 2007 at 8:01 pm
wow that’s a really cool blog Bryant. The manatees are really interesting animals, it’s really depressing that they keep dying off. That’s alot of food, i can’t even imagine having to eat that much every day!!!
September 11th, 2007 at 9:22 pm
I never knew how much they had to eat daily to survive. I have actually been able to see manatees before, in captivity nonetheless, and they are just an amazing animal and it’s sad to see such a peaceful animal become endangered. It’s pretty sad that they are called “sea cows” because they taste like beef. They just don’t seem like something that should be eaten.
September 11th, 2007 at 11:17 pm
I know I wouldn’t want to eat a Manatee! I don’t even like steak! It’s really sad about that though. Is there anything being done to help save them besides the habitat?
September 12th, 2007 at 4:37 pm
Even now that they are being protected, how well are they doing in population? also, what do they do with all the food that they eat if they swim so slowly?
September 12th, 2007 at 9:06 pm
I definitly didn’t know people eat manitees.. thats pretty sick and weird. They eat a ton though. I was surprised to see that they aren’t harmful because they’re pretty big and creepy to me. Is it possible at all for them to injur people?
September 12th, 2007 at 9:17 pm
Hey, Stephen T, it’s kind of hard to understand what you’re saying. If they swim slowly, then you want to know why they eat so much? Are you asking about rate of digestion, or metabolism, or what? You’ll find on one of the websites that it says the manatees have to eat to stay warm. From this, I infer that they have a high metabolism. If they swim at least 3 mph, and if they’re awake for say 10 hours a day, then they move at most 30 miles a day. They need the nutrition to burn for this, and being herbivores, getting the needed protien might be a challenge. They also don’t have the ability to store the fat, and keep blubber, in order to keep them warm. Does this answer your question, or even help?
September 12th, 2007 at 9:34 pm
Oh, and for Taylor, Grant, and Kat, I found a pretty strange blog online about somewhere in the Bible, where Moses is relaying the message of God, that he told the people of Isreal to give an offering. However, being that our God is so understanding, he gave the Isrealites options. In those options, he told them they could bring “sea cow” hides to the offering. Being in ancient times, making full use of the carcass is very fishable. Check it out for yourself; provided is the website. This blog has a ton of non-sense, but no profanity is used, and the conversations are kept clean. Just check out the guy’s biological explanation of them being present in the Red Sea, and the Medditereanean at the time also.
P.S. Just something to chew on……………………………… (get it?)
September 12th, 2007 at 9:46 pm
wow it is a big animal. Why do the cheeks seem like they are breathing in and out? It is very sad that they are dieing.
September 12th, 2007 at 9:51 pm
(THIS COMMENT IS A BACK UP TO THE PREVIOUS ONE BY BRYANT)
Hey you guys, just found another great website. Really wanna know some history on the consumption of this aquatic mammal? Check out this website. Sorry, the previous one was less informative, but more intertaining. This website has more information, as opposed to a sprinkle or two of information here and there. Sorry, that website was a little out there. Just check oput this one, and see what you think.
http://library.thinkquest.org/J0112412/manatee.htm
P.S. At least it was biblical…… right?!?!?!? Those guys seriously had nothing better to do!
September 13th, 2007 at 3:58 pm
wow, I had no idea that manatees could catch pnuemonia. it’s really sad that they are dying from illness and boats and what not. It’s good that they are protected in california, but aren’t they protected almost everywhere?
September 13th, 2007 at 6:06 pm
PEOPLE EAT MANATEES!?!?!?! How could anyone do that!?!?! That’s just terrible. I can’t believe that anyone would want to hurt them in anyway, but that might just be me.
Also, I think it’s really neat that the sailors thought they were mermaids. That’s just a cool, interesting fact.
September 13th, 2007 at 8:08 pm
I’m really glad that manatees are being protected now. I can’t believe how much they eat! Imagine if they were carnivorous! They could wipe out a population of animals if they ate that much!
September 13th, 2007 at 8:18 pm
eeew! people eat manatees!? that is so nasty and disgusting and eew. That is so inhumane. They are too cute to eat and they are harmless. It is pretty disgusting though that they eat so much. Atleast it is plants and not something like we would eat. (Mc Donalds, Burger King, Wendy’s, etc.) It is realy sad that they can get killed/hurt by boat propellers, predators, and fishers, it is terrible.
September 13th, 2007 at 8:32 pm
I was looking at the link about why they were called “sea cows” and wow i can not believe that its because they taste like beef! I mean they are getting extinct out there and people are eating them! The fact that boats and illnesses are killing them is no big shock becasue it is usually the reason of injuries to sea animals. It would be nice if there were manatee docotors that come everynow and then to their habitat and give them a check up.
September 15th, 2007 at 1:52 pm
I think manatees are beautiful creatures. They are one of those species that everyone loves. I think the fact that people would eat something so adorible is horrible (hey it rhymes). I never knew why they were called sea cows, till now (it rhymes again), but I will never call them that ever again.
September 15th, 2007 at 3:11 pm
Wow, Manatees sure are interesting creatures. It amazes me that a creature can eat so much and maintain a speed of 5 miles an hour.
September 15th, 2007 at 7:56 pm
Um, hey, I didn’t mean for my information to be misleading. If you looked at the link, you would’ve saw that people ate these creatures when they were in an abundance, and still new to western society. The only exception was in South America where uncharted villages and indegionous peoples have religious and medicinal beliefs about the bones of the animal. THEY DO NOT EAT MANATEES IN TODAYS SOCIETY! They’re strictly protected by law. Sorry if I mislead you.
September 15th, 2007 at 11:12 pm
manatees are one of my favorite animals. i think they are so cute! when i was in third grade, my class adopted one.
September 16th, 2007 at 10:34 am
Brantley,
How do you adopt manatee? Did you have to pitch in to sponser it, or did you just request funding to help the manatee? Also, I’m almost positive it (the manatee) didn’t live in Atlanta. How’d ya do that?
September 16th, 2007 at 7:02 pm
manatees are so cute, whenever i go to florida i see those signs in the water that say “slow : manatee zone” but i never get to see any in the water!
September 17th, 2007 at 9:06 pm
Wow i can’t believe all the food they consume. Where do they put it all? I have got to see one in the wild in Hawaii it was amazing.
September 18th, 2007 at 9:56 pm
Stephen D,
Are you seriously asking me where do they put it all? I’ve got tons of info on their consumption and the metabolism of this animal. Did you read any of this? This is kinda the same thing Stephen T asked about.
September 18th, 2007 at 10:04 pm
Sorry, didn’t mean to put ya down Stephen D, It just kinda felt like the time I spent on this was put in vein. Food and manatees have been a major topic on this blog. It just seemed like you were just trying to get your points for the blog, instead of reading everything and getting involved. I know, I can’t say anything when it conmes to stuff like that, and procrastinating, and lack of quality and all that, so in a calmer response, lets try this again. The information you’re looking for is all over the blog. Check out some of the comments. There are also a few websites concerning the digestive system of the manatee. If you have anymore questions, feel free to ask.
P.S. Seriously, ask. Don’t mean to seem so up-tight. Sorry
September 19th, 2007 at 7:11 pm
My parents and I are trying to set up a date when we can go scuba diving with them (or just snorkel). They are so playful at the aquariums I go to. Its so sad that they hurt themselves by getting “propelled” by boats. If they have been getting run over for so long, why haven’t they adapted or evolved so they swim in deeper waters away from boats. I know they are mammals and breath air, but why haven’t they adapted to somthing more useful like superspeed?
September 20th, 2007 at 8:22 pm
It is so sad that the manatees are still eaten even though they are protected. I thought in the video that it was really neat when he got his food with his “hands”.
Bryant-
you can adopt animals like Brantley said from a nature center. When I was in 3rd grade we adopted a snake. To adopt them all your class had to do was sponser it. When you adopted it you never got the animal, but you were sent pictures of it.
September 22nd, 2007 at 9:02 am
OHHHH….. SO why doesn’t Ms. Baker’s class adopt an animal? Fun little project, bragging rights, helping the enviorment. Well, maybe that’s alittle kiddish, and Ms.B’s got alot on her hands, so, oh well. Oh, and, uh, Caroline, people don’t eat manatees in today’s society. I’m not sure if I posted some kind of comment about this earlier, not sure. Anyways, thanks for responding.
September 29th, 2007 at 12:21 am
yeah its bad thats such peaceful animals are dying so often, i guess there is a lot of competition between them with all of the food they have to eat daily
September 30th, 2007 at 3:45 pm
That would be cool for Miss Baker to adopt a class pet. I heard you could adopt a whale but how does that work?
September 30th, 2007 at 10:17 pm
I loved your post Bryant; sorry it took me so long to comment, I’ve been soooo busy lately. But I really did like it. Manatees are so cool, I love how peaceful and serene they are. I think it’s funny that they eat so much but still can actually move:) I didn’t know that they were herbivores, that is even better. And who knew that they had to eat so much to keep alive. Ocean water definitely doesn’t seem to be above 70 degrees, so it’s good they have all that blubber (don’t you just love that word?:)). Those pictures are awesome! I’m glad they are protected by the law. Do you know when they started to do that?
October 4th, 2007 at 11:35 pm
No problem Eveyln. I want to say 1970’s. it’s somewhere in my resources. And in all honesty, why doesn’t our class adopt a pet?
P.S. We’ve alllll been busy.