West Indian Mantee in New York City
Angus Wilson
observers from the Hudson River, or as the Boston Herald put it seen
"cruising past the Statue of Liberty and the nightclubs and skyscrapers
of Manhattan".
The animal has been tracked as it moved up the Atlantic coast of the
US, presumably from Florida. There have been sightings off Maryland,
Delaware, New Jersey and then from various spots along the Hudson River
side of Manhattan in New York. Most recent signtings have been near
Ossining in Westchester County. There are a handful of manatee reports
for New England, including one of Montauk Point in 1998. Whether the
manatee will continue up river or return to oceanic water is uncertain.
It is possible that this is 'Chessie', a male that is known to have
made two previous trips up the coast reaching as far north as Point
Judith, Rhode Island before loosing his transmitter. In 1995, Chessie
left Florida on June 13 and arrived in New York Harbor on Aug. 6. In
1994, Chessie ventured as far north as the Chesapeake Bay (hence the
name) and was monitored until late September, when cooling water
temperatures prompted biologists to airlift him back to Florida.
In June 2006, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
voted unanimously to remove the West Indian Manatee from the state's
endangered species list to howls of protest from environmental groups
concerned that the species is still in desperate need of protection. A
recent survey suggested the population is greater than 3000 animals.
The Florida manatee population is very vulnerable to habitat loss and
injury from boats and their propellers.
Cheers, Angus Wilson
New York City
http:/www.oceanwanderer.com