A note from an Atlanta friend said she recently was in McIntosh County in coastal Georgia for a boating trip with some friends — and she was intrigued by a sign at a public boat ramp where they launched their boat.
The sign, erected by the state Department of Natural Resources, warned boaters to help save Georgia’s manatees by taking certain precautions to avoid striking the large, slow-moving mammals. (Manatees are federally protected under the Endangered Species Act and under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.)
“Living in Atlanta, I didn’t know that Georgia has manatees,” my friend wrote. “I thought they all lived in freshwater springs and rivers in Florida.”
Actually, dozens of manatees migrate each year from Florida to Georgia when coastal waters start warming up around April. They usually stay until around October, when cooling waters force them back to Florida.
The gentle creatures move easily between salt water and fresh water, although they seem to prefer the latter. On Georgia’s coast during summer, manatees are most frequently sighted in tidal creeks and rivers of McIntosh, Glynn and Camden counties.
“Manatees take advantage of Georgia’s extensive marshlands,” said DNR biologist Jessica Thompson. “The brackish marshlands, tidal and freshwater ecosystems along our coast are full of food — emergent vegetation and smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora).” Manatees feed on these plants primarily along the marsh edge. Algae, another food source, grows on or near docks.
These shallow-water feeding areas put manatees, which swim just below the surface, at risk of being struck and fatally injured by boat propellers. The DNR urges boaters to be on constant lookout for the animals and to obey no-wake and speed zones, especially around docks. But even if you’re not in a boat, it’s illegal to touch manatees, approach them or to provide them food or water because it might change their behavior.
Adult manatees typically are 9-10 feet long and weigh half a ton. An estimated 7,000 to 11,000 manatees remain in Florida.
IN THE SKY: From David Dundee, Tellus Science Museum astronomer: The moon will be first quarter Saturday evening. Mercury is low in the west just after sunset. Mars and Jupiter are in the east a few hours before sunrise. Saturn rises in the east before midnight.
Charles Seabrook can be reached at charles.seabrook@yahoo.com.
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