By the end of November, I had seen over 100 manatees. To date we have seen 146 individuals, a new record for a season. One day I saw 96 for the morning count, far from the 107 on 27 Dec. last season, but still a lot of manatees. I also happened to see 114 during the course of a day, one short of the record during a synoptic survey last season. My count for the first synoptic survey this season was 112.
Calves seem to run in high low cycles.
The highest was 12, last season, and the low this season is 10. A sample of Ranger Wayne's data for this season is below. Apparent signs at this time are chronic stress from cold winter weather, but we hope to learn more about the exact causes of her death. Megan 319 cm 1,085 lbs. Addison 248 cm 680 lbs.