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Mo the manatee eases into wild

After his third release, Mo is eating freshwater vegetation much earlier, says a woman tracking the manatee's progress.

By BARBARA BEHRENDT
Published September 26, 2005

CRYSTAL RIVER - Since his third release into the wild at Kings Bay in August, Mo seems to be getting the hang of being a wild manatee.

Monica Ross of the Wildlife Trust, reported last week that Mo has been traveling with a group of other manatees for late-day trips out to the mouth of the Crystal River. Ross, who has been tracking Mo since his release, has also observed Mo feeding on freshwater vegetation at a much earlier point in his release than the last time.

Sometimes manatees face such "sensory overload" moving from a concrete tank to a natural waterway with other animals and noises and food growing around them, that they don't even begin to eat for a month, Ross said.

"It's a lot for them to get used to," she said.

Eating the freshwater vegetation has not been a problem for Mo. He had been released two other times but got into trouble each time and had to be recaptured. The first time he was found far south and west at the Dry Tortugas. The second time he landed in the Tampa Bay area and in an emaciated state and suffering injuries from a boat strike when he was captured.

One of the theories for why he was in such bad shape last time is that he sought out freshwater areas around Tampa Bay, areas that traditionally don't offer much aquatic vegetation for manatees to munch on.

Ross said when she is tracking the manatees that are radio tagged, as Mo is, she watches for specific behaviors that could indicate that the animal is feeding. After the manatee moves on, she checks the area to get an idea of whether they really have eaten there and makes a note of it.

Because Mo and the manatees he is traveling with have been out toward the gulf at night, she has not been able to observe Mo eating saltwater vegetation. During his last captivity, animal care workers taught him to eat saltwater vegetation in preparation for his release.

The reason Ross doesn't follow the animal more closely to observe feeding and other behaviors is because she doesn't want to change the animal's natural behavior.

Mo has also shied away from contact with snorkelers and from boats, Ross said. Because he is radio tagged, he has been easy to spot by people coming into the area to swim with manatees. The tag is attached to the manatee's tail, and radio signals are sent through a tethered antenna that floats when the manatee is near the surface.

Mo was originally captured as an orphaned calf in the Withlacoochee River in 1994. During his years in captivity, he made the rounds of nearly every facility in Florida that treats injured and orphaned animals except for the Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park.

Ross said she hopes Mo will stay with the other manatees and will learn from their example how to make it through the upcoming winter. In Kings Bay, that will mean learning to cope with the many people that come into the area to see the animals.

But she noted that manatees do learn about sanctuaries and how they can escape human contact by spending time in those no-entry zones. Manatee sanctuaries are activated in Kings Bay and surrounding waters from Nov. 15 through March 31 each year.

What she has seen so far with Mo has encouraged Ross that this time he might be able to stay in the wild.

"He seems to be adjusting pretty well," she said.

For information on Mo's progress, check under "data maps" and "updates" on the Wildtracks Web site at: www.wildtracks.org/Florida/home.htm

--Barbara Behrendt can be reached at 564-3621 or behrendt@sptimes.com

[Last modified September 26, 2005, 01:18:19]