Nearly 200 Florida manatees filmed basking in shallow waters with dolphins

Video is unusual in that it captures species that don’t interact often in high numbers as manatee numbers are down Hundreds of Florida manatees filmed basking alongside dolphins – video Almost 200 threatened Florida manatees have been filmed together basking in shallow waters off the state’s west coast, the remarkable drone footage also showing a pod of playful dolphins swimming through the group. The images were shot last week near St Petersburg by See Through Canoe, an outdoors adventure company that frequently posts videos of encounters with Florida’s marine life on its social media channels. The YouTube video of the manatees and dolphins at play is unusual in that it captures the species together in such high numbers. The Florida fish and wildlife conservation commission estimates that only about 7,500 manatees exist in the wild in the south-eastern US, up from only around 1,250 two decades ago but far short of historical highs. Hundreds die each year from watercraft strikes and disease. “Dolphins and manatees don’t interact super often, mainly because manatees spend a lot of their time in fresher waters than you find dolphins,” said Mike Heithaus , dean of Florida International University College of Arts, Sciences and […]

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