Making Contact “Most manatees don’t want to have much of anything to do with people,” says Patrick Rose. He’s an aquatic biologist. He’s also the executive director of the Save the Manatee Club. “T ey seek out quiet places to rest, especially on cold winter days and nights.” Rose believes that there should be strict rules


in Kings Bay. He thinks the distance between a swimmer and a manatee should always be a full body length away. If the manatee chooses to come closer, that’s up to the manatee. But the swimmer should never crowd the manatee. Local activist Tracy Colson agrees. “T ere


should be no rubbing or touching,” she says. “T at’s what dogs are for. Manatees are wild animals. Let them be wild.” Most visitors are respectful. T ey try to


follow some basic rules: Don’t disturb resting manatees. Don’t get in their way when they are swimming. But Colson points out that there have been


abuses. In 2006, she began making videos to document what was happening. Many of her videos shocked viewers. T ey showed people trying to ride manatees. T ey showed guides taking babies from their mothers to pass around to tourists.


Overcrowding T ere are other issues, too. Manatees live in the water. But they are air-breathing mammals. T ey spend much of their time near the surface. T ey are also slow-moving animals. T is makes them vulnerable to motor boats. In the last fi ve years, more than 80 manatees have died each


year from watercraſt -related incidents. Many advocates are pushing for lower speed limits to protect manatees. Overcrowding is also an issue. Tour


boats take snorkelers and divers to several locations around Kings Bay. Yet the narrow canal alongside T ree Sisters Springs is by far the most popular. At times, more than 300 manatees crowd into this area. T e manatees are rarely alone. Dozens


of kayakers and scores of swimmers might surround them. Twenty or more tour boats might lie anchored in the canal. T is overcrowding not only causes stress for the manatees, but the visitors, too! Some argue that access to the manatees


should be restricted. Yet tourism related to manatees is a big business. More than 250,000 people come to Crystal River each year to swim with or kayak above the manatees. As much as $30 million is brought to the area every year as a result. Local shop owners say they’d lose business if customers weren’t able to go home and tell friends, “I touched a manatee.” Many visitors leave with an appreciation


for manatees and a desire to know more about them. For now, there seems to be enough room for both man and manatee. But maintaining that balance may always be a challenge.


WORDWISE


activist: a person who campaigns for some kind of social change


advocate: a person who publicly supports or recommends a particular cause or policy


endangered: at risk of extinction 6


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