Manatees take up residence primarily in Florida s coastal waters during winter and migrate either as far north as the Carolinas or as far west as Louisiana during the summer months. Manatees can be found in the warm waters of shallow rivers, bays, estuaries and coastal waters. Manatees are herbivores and eat marine and freshwater plants. Well known for their gentle, slow-moving nature, manatees have also been known to body surf or barrel roll when playing. Normally they rest and feed often.
Manatees communicate by squealing under water to demonstrate fear, stress or excitement.
After a one-year gestation period, calves are born weighing between 60 and 70 pounds and measuring about three to four feet. Most manatees have a pattern of scars on their backs or tails from collisions with boats. Scientists use these patterns to identify individuals. But these collisions can be fatal for the manatee. Besides boating accidents, manatees have been found crushed or drowned in flood-control gates and also suffer from pollution and habitat loss.