It's hard to believe that sailors once mistook manatees for mermaids. These sea mammals look more like small blimps than beautiful women, and they are much larger. Manatees are harmless. They rarely fight each other, and they have no natural enemies.
Manatees are as calm as cows grazing in a meadow.
Sometimes they are called sea cows. There are three kinds of manatees, but all of them look and behave much the same. They all stay in warm waters. One kind ranges from Florida to the coastal areas of Brazil. Another inhabits the Amazon River.