West Indian manatee

The West Indian manatee (Trichechus manatus) or "sea cow"  is a species of manatee. It is the largest living member of the order Sirenia (which also includes dugongs and the extinct Steller's sea cow).

The West Indian manatee is a different species from the Amazonian manatee (Trichechus inunguis) and the African manatee (Trichechus senegalensis). 

The Florida manatee and the Antillean manatee are endangered. Federal, state, private, and nonprofit organizations are working to protect these species from natural and human threats, such as collisions with boat propeller blades.Deutsch C.J; Self-Sullivan C. & & Mignucci-Giannon A. 2008. Trichecus manatus. In 2010 IUCN red list of threatened species (Version 2010.4) Retrieved 6 December 2011 from www.iucnredlist.org

 Subspecies 
The West Indian manatee has at least two subspecies. One is the Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris, abbreviated T. m. latirostris). Another is the Antillean or Caribbean manatee (Trichechus manatus manatus, abbreviated T. m. manatus).

New research shows that there may be three groups:
 Florida and the Greater Antilles
 Mexico, Central America and northern South America
 Northeastern South America.

References

Category:Sirenia
Category:West Indies Federation
Category:National symbols of Costa Rica