By Sharon Young
Florida's manatees are in trouble. With 396 recorded deaths out of an estimated population of around 3,000, last year was the second worst year on record for manatee mortality. The number of manatees killed by collisions with boats increased nearly 15 percent. Because of boat collisions, dwindling habitat, and other threats, scientists have estimated that the manatee population may be cut in half over the next 45 years.
Compounding these threats is a recent move by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWCC), the latest development in years of planning by officials to weaken protection for manatees. In 1999, under pressure from economic interest groups such as boating organizations and developers, the agency redefined its criteria for listing species as endangered. Seven years later, the change in definitions and continued lobbying from interest groups have finally borne fruit; the FWCC is taking up a plan to use the newer and weaker criteria to downlist manatees from "endangered" status to "threatened" status even though the population has not recovered.
If politics triumphs over science, the consequences for manatees could be dire.
What Downlisting Would Mean for the Manatee
- Florida will probably reduce or redirect funding for manatee and habitat conservation, enforcement of manatee protection regulations, and manatee research.
- The boating public will erroneously believe that manatees are now recovering and assume that speed zones can be lifted in crucial manatee habitat across Florida. Brevard County has already presented a petition to the FWCC to do just that.
- When new marinas and docks are proposed or built, manatee protection will not be given the priority it is now.
- The federal government is more likely to follow Florida's lead and downlist manatees under the federal Endangered Species Act.
What You Can Do
The FWCC will be meeting to discuss the downlisting plan, among other matters, in West Palm Beach, Fla. on June 7. The commissioners and Florida Governor Jeb Bush must be told to stop the state from taking this disastrous step. Click here to take action now.
Sharon Young is The HSUS's Marine Issues Field Director.
