Averaging 10 feet long and 1,000 lbs. Manatees are grayish brown in color, oftentimes influenced by the growth of algae on their thick and wrinkled skin. Their bodies resemble the seal's, and their whiskered snouts look like the walrus' without tusks. Their nostrils, located on top of their faces for easy breathing, have tight-fitting flaps that keep the water out when they're submerged. Gushes of strong exhalation at the water surface reveal the manatees' presence.
Manatees move slowly, and they are also slow to reproduce.
Females mature in 5 to 9 years and give birth to one calf every 2 to 5 years. Young manatees nurse underwater, on teats under the mother's flippers. They alongside the mother for about 2 years, learning travel routes and survival skills. Migrants to Warm Coastal Waterways Manatees thrive in warm water. At temperatures below 68 degrees F, manatees stop eating, suffer cold stress and oftentimes die.