Manatee

Trichechus manatus

Description:

Photo take at -30 ft very near to a Caribbean reef. Spotting at 11.45 am today, about 1km from the coast. This is to me the spotting of a life time. You can see a Remora attach to it, amazing. Is a large, bulky aquatic mammal with flipper forelimbs and a spatula-shaped tail. Manatees can grow to 4 mt in length and weigh up to 1000 kg. They may live to 50-60 years old.

Habitat:

Inhabit warm waters of the Western Atlantic from Florida to Brazil, they live in coastal waters, freshwater inlets, and river mouths.

Notes:

Manatees are ENDANGERED SPECIES close to the limits, seen it today in a natural environment give me hope for this amazing creature. I still in shock.

Species ID Suggestions

147 Comments (1–25)

Ava T-B 4 years ago

Gerardo, I'm readying a post about November being Manatee Month and I love this spotting so much. But, the video is gone! Are you able to include it in this spotting again?
Thanks!

DanielePralong 7 years ago

Today is #ManateeAppreciationDay, and these beautiful images and video are still our most popular manatee spotting, and one of our most popular spottings of all times! Congratulations Gerardo!

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Gerardo Aizpuru 8 years ago

Thanks to all, I appreciated so much, Yes this are remoras James
Well playa del Carmen is surrounding by nature so going to the cenotes is a good place to see wildlife dcslaugh

dcslaugh 8 years ago

Nice Manatee! We have them here in Florida too. I will be going to Playa in QR this month! Any suggestions on where to go to take pictures? Hay sugerencias en donde hay sitios buenos para sacar fotos de la naturaleza en Playa del Carmen?

Daniel R Hughes 8 years ago

amazing video and great shots I had no clue remoras hitched rides on manatees the manatee is a very pretty creature.

James McNair 8 years ago

Wonderful video, was that Remoras on its belly?

Julius Fairbanks 9 years ago

absolutely awsome

Gerardo Aizpuru 9 years ago

Thanks to all so much !

Mattia_Zagami 9 years ago

beautiful

DDO 10 years ago

awesome!

Ava T-B 10 years ago

I was looking through the "popular" spottings and saw this one again. The video of the manatee "walking" is just wonderful!

HazelMarley 10 years ago

So cute

Gerardo Aizpuru 10 years ago

Thanks

shebebusynow 10 years ago

The video makes me realize, more than stills have in the past, how these creatures could ever be mistaken for 'mermaids'. There is an eerie human-quality to the way their head and appendages move. And those 'friend fish' hanging so close are amazing! I wonder what the dugongs think of them.