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A meeting of the minds on manatees

One official at the meeting said the harassment is not yet at a crisis level.

By BARBARA BEHRENDT
Published March 23, 2007

CRYSTAL RIVER - They've seen the headlines and watched the videos, but this week local residents most affected by the area's swim-with-the-manatees activity talked about the future.

On Wednesday evening, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service assembled members of its volunteer Manatee Watch, local dive businesses that have formal permits to operate in the Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge, and state officers with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

The session, planned as a wrap-up discussion as the manatee wintering season winds down, was an ongoing educational effort with the local stakeholders, said Crystal River refuge manager Jim Kraus.

While the meeting covered big-picture issues including the budget and staffing cuts hampering wildlife refuges nationwide, it was the discussion of the local hot-button issue - manatee harassment - that captured the most attention.

Concerns have centered on a series of videos shot in area waters including Three Sisters Springs and Kings Bay by former Manatee Watch members Tracy Colson and Steve Kingery.

The videos, which have been in the media and available on the Internet, show clear instances of harassment as people ride, feed and chase manatees. All of those activities are illegal under the state and federal laws designed to protect manatees.

Kraus said after hearing all the discussion at Wednesday's meeting, he could put the issue into the right context.

"There are some problems but I don't think I'd characterize it as a crisis. It's a turning point," he said.

Later this year, Kraus and his staff will begin public meetings to discuss the refuge's comprehensive plan. The outcome of that multiyear process could be changes in the rules for swimming with manatees.

Kraus said the meeting discussion was "cordial" but also noted that people are passionate on all sides of the manatee issue. He did not allow media coverage of the meeting itself.

"A lot of it was educational," he said. "We found that it is pretty effective to have everybody come together and compare notes. We need to have a conversation here."

Some people offered suggestions on limiting the number of visitors or requiring guides with swimmers.

Others talked about the sheer numbers of visitors causing the problem. Others concentrated on the troubles caused by rental boat operators.

Federal and state officials talked about the laws governing manatee protection and the guidelines for interacting with them.

While the law doesn't strictly say people cannot touch manatees, some interactions can be interpreted as harassment, Kraus said. Then there are clear cut instances when people cross a line into illegal activity such as when they enter a manatee sanctuary.

Paul Cross, assistant manager at the Plantation Inn Dive Shop, said he was pleased to hear the federal officials talking about how successful they have been in protecting the growing manatee population in the area.

"I think it is a misconception of what is harassment and what is not harassment. It's more of a perception more than anything," Cross said.

But Crystal River City Council member Susan Kirk disagreed.

She lives near one of the manatee sanctuaries and she sees and reports sanctuary violations and harassment all the time.

"I can stand on my sea wall and I'll see 10 or 15 divers come off a dive boat and chase the manatees into my corner," she said. "That's harassment."

When she tells people to stop, her reward is often a string of profanities. She said Manatee Watch members also have had run-ins.

"It's bad out there," she said.

Kirk said people are concerned that the city's own slogan promoting an experience of "playing" with manatees is sending the wrong message.

At her urging, the City Council is meeting with Kraus at 6 p.m. Monday in a workshop on what the city can do to help.

"I feel if we don't decide our fate, somebody is going to decide it for us," she said.

Dive shops are also interested in being part of the solution.

"Obviously there are going to be some changes at some point down the road and it would be important for us to be part of that process or we're going to get something shoved down our throats," said Marty Senetra of Bird's Underwater Manatee Tours.

Fish and Wildlife Service biologist Jim Valade said that the history of the swimming with manatees issue in the area has cemented in the minds of area residents that everyone has a stake in making the activity work for the animals.

That means that everyone also needs to help find a way to make that happen.

"This is a community issue," Valade said.

"People realize there is only so much that the agencies can do, only so much that the dive shops can do. We've all got to work together to create an opportunity to discuss a solution...

"If we do that, the manatees stand to gain."

Fast Facts:

By the numbers

Survey says ...

An aerial survey Wednesday showed 323 manatees in area waters. The count, conducted by staff of the Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge, turned up 184 manatees in Kings Bay including 25 calves, 14 in the Crystal River including one calf, 29 in the Salt River including three calves, 41 in the discharge canal of the Progress Energy complex including one calf, three in the Cross Florida Barge Canal, 27 in the Homosassa Blue Waters including three calves, and 25 in the lower Homosassa River including seven calves. The counts are conducted every two weeks to keep track of the local manatee population and its distribution.

Follow the rules

Here's what the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says about swimming, diving and boating near manatees:

- Operate boats at idle and slow speed where posted speed zones are in effect.

- Do not enter designated manatee sanctuaries for any reason. Sanctuaries are in effect Nov. 15 through March 31.

- Observe manatees from the surface of the water and at a distance. Manatees on the bottom are likely to be resting or feeding.

- Never ride, chase, poke or surround manatees.

- Never separate a mother and calf or an individual from the group.

- Avoid excessive noise and splashing that could disturb bottom-resting manatees.

- Use snorkel gear when attempting to watch manatees. The sound of scuba gear may cause them to leave the area.

- Do not feed manatees or give them water.

[Last modified March 23, 2007, 06:20:20]