Saving Manatees

Although the endangered Florida manatee has no natural predators, avoiding collisions with boats and making it through winter's cold snaps is another story. The recent oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has the potential to threaten the manatee's survival even further.

The Cincinnati Zoo partners with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Manatee Rescue, Rehabilitation, and Release Program, which rescues dozens of wild manatees each year.

When a manatee is in serious distress, a team of Fish and Wildlife Service biologists capture it using special equipment such as nets, stretchers, and rescue boats. The manatee is housed and cared for at a rehabilitation facility in Florida. Some animals only require short-term care and then are released back into the wild. Those animals that call for long-term rehabilitation are sometimes sent to other facilities for care, including the Cincinnati Zoo.

To date, the Zoo has been home to nine manatees, six of which have been released back into the wild. Our current residents, CC Baby and Turner, and recent past resident, Lil' Joe, will be released in the near future.

While a manatee is with us, it periodically undergoes a medical exam to assess its progress and condition. Once it's healthy, it is prepared for release back into the wild. Accompanied by zookeeper staff, the manatee is transported back to the Florida facility where it gets used to eating natural vegetation and living in saltwater again.

Watch Slip being released back into the wild and find out where he is now!

When the time comes to release a manatee, a radio-transmitter may be attached around the base of the manatee’s tail, which allows biologists to keep track of the animal and how it is doing. The most recent release of one of our manatees, Slip, happened this past February. One of our zookeepers had the opportunity to be a part of the release team.

meet our manatees

CC Baby

CC Baby was named for Cape Coral, the city through which the Caloosahatchee River flows. Discovered alone under a dock, she was rescued as a baby on September 16, 2007. She spent the first few years of her life at Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa, Florida before coming to Manatee Springs in March, 2010. CC Baby has a C-shaped notch in her tail.

Turner 

As a juvenile, Turner was rescued from the cool, winter waters of Tampa Bay on January 7, 2010. She came to Manatee Springs in March, 2010, after spending a few months at Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa, Florida.

Watch a video of CC Baby and Turner getting used to their new, temporary home.