Manatee Trivia (Part 3)!

Florida Manatees gathering in the balmy warm 72 degree Fahrenheit water temperature at Blue Spring State Park.

Greetings!

I thought it would be fun in continuing my manatee trivia for you. So here is the third installment. The feedback I’m getting is that you like the question and answer formant! It’s worth repeating that we manatees are very large marine mammals with two flippers and a body tapering down to a paddle-shaped tail.

Ok – let the manatee party continue! Here’s some more cool manatee trivia in the form of a Q&A session…

  1. True or false: Manatees are very fast swimmers and can swim as fast as dolphins.

False! Manatees are actually very slow moving. They travel at a pace no faster than 3 to 5 miles per hour! However, on short bursts, they can travel up to 20 miles per hour!

  1. True or false: In general, the manatee is a very curious and gentle creature.

True! Manatees are very curious and are extremely gentle. Take a look at the image below where a very curious manatee came up to a paddle-boarder in Jupiter, Florida and gave a BIG manatee greeting!

  1. All manatees have two forelimbs called flippers. How do their flippers function?

A manatee’s flippers function by helping the marine mammal steer through the water. Additionally, their flippers assist the manatee in walking underwater and also help it eat vegetation.

  1. True or false: Manatees have fingernails on their flippers.

True! The West Indian Manatee and the West African Manatee have fingernails on their flippers. However, the Amazonian Manatee and Dugong do not have fingernails.

  1. True or false: Manatees are very large because of their layers of body fat.

False! The manatee actually has very little body fat. It is the manatee’s bone structure, which makes them extremely large.

  1. Why do manatees need water temperatures of at least 68 degrees Fahrenheit to survive?

This is because manatees are warm-blooded and have a slow metabolism. Any water temperature below 68 degrees Fahrenheit can create cold stress for the manatee and this could eventually kill it.

  1. True or false: A manatee can distinguish between different-sized objects, colors, and patterns.

True!

Stay tuned for more of my manatee trivia!

If you are in Florida and you see a sick or injured manatee, please call the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission at: 1-888-404-FWCC. They are the folks who are responsible for rescuing us in Florida.

Here’s the Save the Manatee Club link to learn more about us manatees …

www.savethemanatee.org

Here’s a cool link for you to learn more about how we’re rescued and brought into rehabilitation …

www.wildtracks.org

~ Kobee Manatee

Related Posts

Manatee Trivia (Part 1)! March 29, 2017

Manatee Trivia (Part 2)! April 6, 2017

Cool and Interesting Facts about Florida Manatees (Part 5), Extraordinary Manatee Trivia! December 4, 2015

Cool and Interesting Facts about Florida Manatees (Part 6), Extraordinary Manatee Trivia! December 11, 2015