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West Indian Manatee

A large mammal measuring between 2.5 and 3.6 metres in length. Manatees can weigh up to 600 kgs. The female is generally a little larger and heavier than the male. Manatees have no ears, very small eyes and due to their oversized lungs can stay underwater for between 15 to 20 minutes at a time. The manatee propels itself with a single horizontal tail fin and two side flippers. Their skin is a greyish colour with a faint touch of light blue. A gentle aquatic mammal that lives in salt or freshwater, they are usually found by river or lagoon mouths. A solitary animal that forms groups during the mating season. Manatees are also mainly a nocturnal animal.

Manatees spend alot of their time eating, on average they spend 6 to 8 hours a day feeding, this usually adds up to between 60 to 100 pounds of aquatic plants daily. Females reach sexual maturity after 8 years, males after 9 years. Pregnancy lasts for 13 months, when the young is born it is a pink colour no more than 1 metre long and weighs around 60 pounds. The calf is fed and stays with the mother for up to 2 years, because of this Manatees only have a calf every 3 to 4 years.

Manatees where once found right along the coast of Honduras. Now they are found in a only a few locations. There are small populations in Cuero y Salado Biological Reserve and Punta Sal and Punta Izopo National Parks. The remote lagoons of the Mosquita are also home to Manatees but there is no current information on their numbers in this remote region.

Manatees are in danger of extinction in Honduras. They are still hunted by humans, who prize the meat as a speciality. Another problem is that manatees are very slow moving, due to this alot are injured or at times killed by motor-boat propellers. Habitat destruction and pollution also are not helping the Manatees survival.

Seeing a Manatee can be very difficult, but not impossible. Their numbers are small and even if you do visit a reserve or national park where they are found, usually mangrove areas the water is very dark so visibility is poor. But don't let this put you off, remember that by visiting and supporting these reserves and national parks with Manatee populations, you are helping greatly in their preservation, protection and future survival.

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