Sea World is turning into a homeless shelter for sea cows during Florida's deadly red tide
More than 6,300 manatees call Florida home — an impressive comeback since 1991, when there were just around 1,200 of them left. But 540 manatees have been killed already this year, and more than 17% of those deaths have been attributed to the red tide.
Manatees are plant eaters; depending on their size, they munch 32-108 lbs of vegetation per day.
Source: Sea World
When red tide rolls in, they essentially poison themselves by snacking on seaweed contaminated with the algae.
Gretchen Lovewell at the Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota said infected manatees can appear drunk, doing barrel rolls in the water and spinning in intoxication.
Source: ABC 7 News Sarasota, NBC WFLA 8 Tampa
Sea World is one of three facilities federally permitted to do manatee rehabilitation. At least 10 manatees poisoned by the red tide have been transported there for care.
Source: Sea World, Sea World Manatee Rehabilitation Area
The sickened manatees are often in a near unconscious state, suffering seizures and facial ticks.
Some manatees get injections of anti-inflammitories and antioxidants when they arrive at Sea World, which helps keep their muscle tissue healthy if they've been out of the water for a while.
Sick manatees often need help breathing and staying afloat. This one is using a foam pillow, and rescuers are making sure it keeps its nose above water to breathe in plenty of oxygen.
Unfortunately, the theme park hasn't been able to save everyone. Two manatees who were rescued from the red tide have died there so far, the company said.
Manatees aren't the only ones who get confused in the algae-plagued waters. Infected sea turtles start swimming in circles and can drown if they're unable to surface to breathe. More than 110 of them have died so far.
Source: Business Insider
The reasons red tides occur are complex, but scientists think that fertilizer runoff probably helps keep the blooms growing when they get close to the shore.
Source: Business Insider
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