Oct 9, 2008 7:40 pm US/Eastern
Biologists To Rescue Lost Manatee
DENNIS (AP) ―
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This manatee has been swimming in waters off Cape Cod for the last two weeks when it should be on its way to Florida waters.
WBZ
Marine wildlife officials are teaming up with Sea World this weekend in a plan to rescue a lost manatee from Cape Cod waters and ship it to Florida.
Experts became concerned about the health of the manatee that has been seen swimming in cold waters off Dennis for the last two weeks.
Chris Cutter of the International Fund for Animal Welfare said it's still uncertain what day they'll try to move the manatee from Sesuit Harbor in Dennis.
But he said the animal must be moved soon for its own health.
Manatees are normally found off Georgia and Florida and aren't used to the Cape's increasingly cold waters.
The roughly 8-foot long creature was seen feeding in Sesuit Harbor in Dennis on Wednesday, prompting the harbor master to post
signs warning fishermen and recreational boaters to slow down.
Nicole Adimey, director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's manatee rescue and rehabilitation program in Jacksonville, Fla., says she's concerned that the waters around Cape Cod are too cold.
When it gets too cold, the animals stop feeding and start burning fat reserves.
Cutter said the manatee seems to be in pretty good health, despite a left eye problem and flipper scar.
The rescue would involve trapping the manatee in a net and moving it to a plane headed to Sea World in Florida, which has a program to rehabilitate manatees.
Adimey says her agency will coordinate with the Cape Cod Stranding Network and Sea World to rescue the animal.
The
Cape Cod Stranding Network, which facilitates animal rescues, is working with the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Sea World with the hope of getting the manatee back to Florida waters.
The Cape Cod Stranding Network has a 24-hour hotline to report stranded or distressed marine animals: 508-743-9548
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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