Manatee sea cow cristal river florida

Two weekends ago, my friends Trey, Victoria, Brooklyn, and I put up a lemonade stand. We wanted to raise enough money to adopt a Manatee from the Save the Manatee Club, because Manatees are endangered. My brother helped us by making colorful signs that said “Save the Manatees.”  When we were done, we had raised $24. My mom gave us an extra dollar so we would have enough money to adopt a Manatee named Whiskers.

Did you know that manatee’s closest relative is the elephant?  They can grow 13′ long and can weigh up to 1,300 pounds?  They are pretty big, and they are good swimmers. They swim about 5 miles per hour. They swim by flapping their tails up and down, and steer with their stretchy flippers. If they’re in really shallow water, they use their front flippers to walk on while they eat sea plants and grasses. Because they are so slow, and like warm, shallow water, Manatees often get hurt by boat propellers when the drivers don’t see them.

Manatees are sea mammals like whales and dolphins. They live in water, and go to the surface to breathe air. They can stay underwater for up to 15 minutes, if they are resting.

A long time ago, people used to hunt Manatees for their meat, skin, and oil. Today, there are laws to protect them. If you would like to adopt a Manatee, or learn even more about them, you can go to