The mystery scourge killing endangered manatees along Florida's Gulf coast may now have claimed 128 of the gentle marine mammals, officials said on Wednesday. Three manatees found along the southwest Florida coast on Wednesday brought the death toll to 128 since March 5, when wildlife officials first began finding large numbers of manatees killed by pneumonia.
Researchers are uncertain what is causing the pneumonia in otherwise healthy animals.
Just over three months into the year, the 1996 manatee death toll of 221 has already surpassed the previous record of 206 set in 1990. The U.S. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, which tracks diseases afflicting humans and researches new viruses, will examine blood samples to try to determine if a virus is behind the pneumonia, said Joy Mills, spokeswoman for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Researchers investigating the manatee deaths are pursuing two theories, Mills said. The pneumonia could be caused by a virus, or a previously undocumented influence of red tide, an algae that produces a toxic substance harmful to some wildlife. The lower Gulf coast area has been hit by a red tide outbreak in recent weeks.