Manatees

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Have you ever seen a manatee in real life or up close at an aquarium? They are very interesting creatures, and very docile! I was fortunate growing up that I lived right on the beach in south Florida, and during the winters manatees by the thousands would migrate southward to the warmer waters of the southeastern United States. Back then they weren't endangered and didn't have all the rules and regulations we have now, and so people would swim with them, pet them, and in some cases--even ride them like horses! Manatees are endangered now, and strict regulations prevent people from touching them, all to help protect these docile creatures. But it is interesting the way the laws are written, you can't touch a manatee unless they touch you first. If they come up to you first and touch you, then you're allowed to touch them back. Many years ago I went on a "swim with the manatees" excursion in Crystal River, just north of Tampa on Florida's gulf coast. There was a spring off of King's Bay on the Crystal River called Three Sisters Spring where manatees would gather by the hundreds. My girlfriend and I were snorkeling there and photographing the manatees, and there was one manatee with a calf that was curious and approached us. We kept our distance, but the young calf was being very playful and came up and "kissed" us, which meant at that point we could touch and pet it. It was such a fun experience, and they are such wonderful creatures, that I wish I could experience it again. But Three Sisters Spring is now closed to swimmers and boaters in order to further protect the manatees, but there is a large boardwalk that circles the springs where visitors can still peer down into the water and see the manatees. The attached photo is one I took recently at Disney World, which has a large aquarium at Epcot (the second largest aquarium after the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta). Disney has three rescued manatees that they are caring for after they were injured in the wild by boaters.