West Indian Manatee

Trichechus manatus

Today’s Wishlist Wednesday species is the West Indian Manatee. I have never seen one in the wild or in-person anywhere, so they are on my wish list.

My first memory of having any awareness of manatees was in elementary school. In second or third grade, we all brought in our coins and symbolically adopted a Manatee called Sweet Gums. We learned all about manatees and would periodically get updates on her. Sadly, she passed a year or two later when she was hit by a boat propeller. It was pretty scaring as a little kid. That’s really what I remember most was seeing photos of propeller scars on the Manatees’ backs and not understanding why people didn’t just not hit them with boats. That was the very beginning of my realizing the ongoing conflict between animals and humans.

Manatees are ridiculous and I love them. They are underwater grazers, which is why they are also called sea cows. They do sometimes ingest small animals in their diet of sea grass. They are chubby, slow, and spend most of their time eating. They might be my spirit animals. Apart from the other species of sirenians, such as Dugongs, they are most closely related to Elephants. If you look at the nails on Manatees’ front flippers, they look like Elephant toe nails.

Manatees are members of the Order Sirenia, which comes from the Latin word siren or mermaid. Apparently, early European sailors mistook Manatees for mermaids and, I know what you are thinking, “Manatees look nothing like mermaids!” If you were to think about it, if mermaids existed and were warm-blooded, they would need to have a thick layer of blubber to keep them warm. Hair wouldn’t serve any useful purpose underwater, so they would probably be bald. They would want to blend into the color of the ocean to avoid predators, so they would likely be grayish-blue. Put those traits together and what do you get? Manatees!
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I am hoping I will get to cross Manatees off my wish list at some point. I’ll need to plan a trip to the coastal waters and rivers of Florida and the Caribbean. If you have been lucky enough to encounter a Manatee, please share in the comments!

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