Stuart, Florida: More Manate has died this year than other years in the history of the recorded Florida, especially from hunger due to loss of seagrass beds, said state officials.
Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission reported that 841 MANATE death was recorded between January 1 and July 2, broke the previous 830 record that died in 2013 because of the outbreak of toxic red tides.
The TCPalm website reported that more than half of deaths had died in the Indian and surrounding river lagoon in Volusia, Brevard, Indian River, St Lucie and Martin Counties.
The majority of extraordinary deaths have been in Brevard, where 312 manatee perishes.
Some biologists believe water pollution kills seatram beds in the area.
“Mortality Manatee has never had been previously due to hunger documented at the Atlantic coast of winter and last spring, ” Florida’s Fish and Wildlife Research Institute wrote when announcing a record Friday.” Most deaths occur during cooler months when Manate migrates to and through Indian River Lagoon, where seagrass is dead.
“Ship strikes are also the main cause of Manatee’s death, killing at least 63 years.
Manatee has been classified as threatened by the federal government, but was reclassified as threatened in 2017.
Environmental lovers ask that the animal was again considered endangered.
The federal government said that around 6,300 Manatee lived in Florida waters, up from around 1,300 in the early 1990s.