{"id":1515,"date":"2024-01-03T11:27:51","date_gmt":"2024-01-03T16:27:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mote.org\/?post_type=program&p=1515"},"modified":"2025-11-12T16:21:06","modified_gmt":"2025-11-12T21:21:06","slug":"manatee-research","status":"publish","type":"program","link":"https:\/\/mote.org\/research\/program\/manatee-research\/","title":{"rendered":"Manatee Conservation Research"},"content":{"rendered":"

For over 30 years, the Manatee Conservation Research Program (MCRP) has been involved in a host of research efforts involving manatee behavioral ecology, abundance and distribution, and population demographics, as well as habitat studies. This research provides timely, scientific-based information to guide conservation policy and management. Program staff also support efforts to inform the public on ways to better protect manatees<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Since 1997, the MCRP has partnered with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the U.S. Geological Survey Sirenian Project to manage an integrated sightings database, the Manatee Individual Photo-Identification System (MIPS). Photo-identification is a non-invasive technique used to identify individual animals over time. The MIPS database plays a crucial role in approximating vital statistics for Florida manatees, including survival and reproductive rates. These metrics are subsequently utilized in both state and federal evaluations concerning the status and recovery of the species. Locally, both long-term photo-identification and aerial surveys have proven valuable in the management of inland and coastal waters by striving to balance human activities with the sustainability of manatees and their habitat.<\/p>\n

The MCRP team was managed by Dr. John Reynolds from 2001 until his passing on Dec. 23, 2017. Dr. Reynolds helped Mote become a beacon of conservation-focused science, particularly through his leadership of the MCRP, which continues the vital mission that he championed. Read about Reynolds\u2019 life and legacy.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n\n

\n
\n
\n \n \"Mote <\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/figure>\n
\n
\n \n \"A <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n A group of manatees with different markings on their skin, including scars from boat propeller blades. Mote scientists photograph these markings to identify individual manatees. <\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n
\n
\n \n \"Mote's <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n Mote's Kerri Scolardi rides in a small airplane, seen flying above at a distance. She counts manatees in the waters below during an aerial survey to help estimate abundance. Credit: Hayley Rutger\/Mote Marine Laboratory <\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n
\n
\n \n \"Bird's-eye <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n Bird's-eye view of multiple Florida manatees basking in a canal, observed during Mote's aerial surveys to count manatees. <\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n
\n
\n \n \"Manatee <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n Manatee over a seagrass bed. Seagrasses are important food sources for manatees. <\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n
\n
\n \n \"A <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n A manatee mating herd in the shallows along a beach. Mating herds involve several male manatees vying to mate with a female. If you see a mating herd, watch from at least 100 feet away. <\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n <\/div>\n\n \n

 <\/p>\n

Current Research<\/h2>\n

Read about the wide variety of research led by MCRP scientists below. Much of our research is focused on the West Indian manatee (Trichechus manatus<\/em>) which includes the subspecies Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris<\/em>). These animals are protected by the\u00a0Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, the Endangered Species Act of 1973, and the Florida Manatee Sanctuary Act of 1978.<\/p>\n

\n \n Aerial Surveys\n <\/span>\n <\/span>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n

The Manatee Research Program has a long history of conducting low-level aerial surveys to count manatees and other wildlife. Our current staff has a combined 25+ years of aerial survey experience, having conducted aerial projects over many of Florida\u2019s waterways. The use of GIS is central in maintaining our sighting databases, analyzing survey data, and producing cartographic documentation of manatee distribution, habitat use patterns, and trends in counts.<\/p>\n

Surveys of Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) power plants across the state have been conducted for four decades by former and current MCRP staff. Counts have exceeded 3,000 manatees on a single winter survey of warm-water refugia at 3 FPL plant locations. Single day counts at FPL\u2019s Cape Canaveral Next Generation Energy Center\u2019s warm-water discharge and nearby waters in Brevard County have approached 2,500+ manatees on several occasions.<\/p>\n

The waterways of Sarasota County have been surveyed by MCRP staff for well over 30 years. These year-round surveys have provided one of the few long-term databases of habitat use and abundance of manatees in the state of Florida. These surveys also highlight locations where human activities and manatee habitat use might be in some conflict, thereby providing up-to-date information for balanced management decisions.<\/p>\n

MCRP staff have participated in aerial surveys to assess state-wide abundance of manatees, organized by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, since the 1990s.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>

\n \n Photo-identification Surveys\n <\/span>\n <\/span>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n

MCRP staff have conducted photo-identification (photo-ID) surveys in waters of the southwestern coast of Florida for over 30 years, and in more recent years in southeastern Florida. Florida manatees can be identified using scars and mutilations on their trunks, flukes, and flippers that are acquired from incidents such as collisions with boats, lesions from cold stress, and entanglement in fishing gear. The process of photographing individual manatees and documenting them over time (photo-ID) provides a gold mine of information on manatee behavior and ecology, habitat use, life history (reproduction, mortality) and other factors necessary to optimally understand and conserve manatees. One important use of the photo-ID data is to generate regional adult survival estimates, which then translate into insights about population status and trends.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>

\n \n Genetic Sampling\n <\/span>\n <\/span>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n

MCRP staff have genetically sampled manatees in southwestern Florida since 2006. In that time, the MCRP developed a unique skin scraping tool that takes a small sample of skin with minimal reactions from manatees. MCRP staff also collaborate with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) with yearly biopsy sampling events during the colder months. Genetic samples are used for many purposes including determining paternity, sex, and as a mark-recapture tool.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>

\n \n UAS Facilitated Research\n <\/span>\n <\/span>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n

The MCRP initiated a pilot\/proof of concept study in 2018 to assess the efficacy of Unmanned Aerial Systems (UASs) for obtaining counts and documenting the distribution of manatees at winter sites in comparison with concurrent conventional aerial surveys. The UAS, flying at an altitude of 300-500 feet, produced high quality video from which counts and distribution of animals could be analyzed, producing similar results obtained by fixed wing-surveys. Manatees were not disturbed by, nor did they react to, the UAS during the trial.<\/p>\n

In winter 2021-2022, MCRP staff, in coordination with other federal, state and non-profit agencies and organizations, conducted UAS surveys to observe body condition and behavior of manatees in order to identify animals in need of rescue. These surveys centered on the Indian River Lagoon, located on the east coast of Florida, a region that has been experiencing significant ecological issues, including a 96% loss in mean seagrass coverage. The loss of forage has resulted in an Unusual Mortality Event, or UME, in which hundreds of manatees have died from starvation since winter December 2020.<\/p>\n

The use of UASs in marine mammal research is still relatively new, and government organizations overseeing protected species have taken a cautious approach on the permitting of their use. Studies such as the ones conducted by the MCRP, as well as other organizations around the globe, have shown UASs offer a safe, cost effective, and non-invasive method for conducting research. The MCRP plans to employ the use of UASs in other aspects of their research, including photo-identification and behavioral studies.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Previous \/ Other Research<\/h2>\n

In addition to our current research above, MCRP scientists have led a wide variety of other projects through the years to benefit manatees and other marine mammal species around the world. Below are highlights.<\/p>\n

\n \n See all\n <\/span>\n <\/span>\n <\/div>\n
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    \n
  • Warm-water springs:<\/strong> MCRP staff have been involved in habitat assessment and manatee use studies of Florida springs, for which selected restoration could provide a long-term, industry independent source of warm water for hundreds of manatees in southwestern Florida. Formal efforts involved Sulphur Springs, Ulele Spring, and Lithia Spring.<\/li>\n
  • Thermal biology:<\/strong> One of the major threats to Florida manatees is cold stress. Cold Stress Syndrome (CSS) affects and kills Florida manatees in winter when water temperatures decrease below ~69\u00b0F. CSS symptoms include (but are not limited to) immune suppression, organ failure, lesions of heart, skin and other organs, eventually causing the death of the animal. The MCRP has conducted studies aimed at: 1) identifying environmental, physiological and morphological parameters that may influence Florida manatees\u2019 susceptibility to cold stress, 2) developing preventive measures against CSS, and 3) identifying indicators for early diagnosis of CSS. The understanding of basic principles of manatee thermoregulation has been enhanced owing to investigations in the two trained resident Florida manatees at Mote, Hugh & Buffett, and through cooperation with Tampa\u2019s Lowry Park Zoo and Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park.<\/li>\n
  • Global research: <\/strong>Previous marine mammal projects led by former program manager Dr. John Reynolds included studies of age determination of bowhead whales and beluga whales in the Arctic, contaminants in Alaska Native subsistence foods and implications for human health, contaminant levels and their effects on sustainability of beluga whales in Cook Inlet and off Point Lay and health status of polar bears in Alaska.<\/li>\n
  • Dr. Reynolds often collaborated with Dr. Dana Wetzel, director of the Environmental Laboratory for Forensics (ELF) at Mote Marine Laboratory, on projects that examined levels and long-term sublethal effects of stressors (noise, contaminants, cold stress, disease) on significant biological functions in manatees and other marine mammals and fish globally. Their collaboration also resulted in the development of biomarkers for the determination of the sex of sturgeon at a very young age; a fact of considerable value to the caviar industry around the world.<\/li>\n
  • MCRP staff have conducted or collaborated on multiple research projects involving manatees fitted with satellite tags over the last 20+ years. These projects include behavioral and habitat use studies of manatees in southwestern and southeastern Florida.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":6217,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","areas-of-research":[12,11],"research-program-type":[1039],"class_list":["post-1515","program","type-program","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","areas-of-research-conservation-restoration-monitoring","areas-of-research-marine-animal-rescue-rehabilitation","research-program-type-mote-research-programs"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nManatee Conservation Research | Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/mote.org\/research\/program\/manatee-research\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta 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