Manatees: Gentle giants of the seas

Manatees live in along the Florida coast, in the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico, the Amazon basin and along the coast of West Africa. And they have fans across the world who celebrate the marine mammal on Manatee Appreciation Day, the last Wednesday in March. Our readers love them, too, and expressed their enthusiasm on social media.

When Christopher Columbus and other explorers sailed the seas in the 15th and 16th century, they didn't just return home with reports about the "new worlds" but also with stories of mermaid sightings. Today we know Columbus and co actually saw manatees. The animals even belong to the order Sirenia - named after sirens, also known as mermaids.

Manatees are herbivores who eat freshwater and saltwater plants like sea grass or mangrove leaves - and lots of them! They weigh up to 1,200 pounds and eat 10 to 15 percent of their bodyweight in plantmass every day. That requires around 7 hours of grazing.

The "floating potatoes," as one of our Twitter followers lovingly called manatees, live in shallow coastal areas and rivers. West Indian and West African manatees spend their lives between salt water and freshwater. The water needs to be 60 degrees Fahrenheit (15 degrees C) or warmer, otherwise they can't survive. The Amazonian manatee lives entirely in freshwater rivers in South America.

The greatest danger for manatees: boats. The animals aren't very fast, with an average speed of three to five miles per hour, and don't stand a chance of escaping an oncoming boat. The propeller can cause serious injuries and might even kill the manatee in a collision. About half of West Indian manatee deaths are caused by humans.

This young male manatee was injured along the Florida coast by some sort of watercraft in summer 2015. Fortunately he was rescued and rehabilitated by the staff at a Miami aquarium. One year later he was healthy enough again to be released into the Loxahatchee River in Jupiter, Florida.

The manatee's closest relative is the dugong. It's in the same order (Sirenia) and looks very similar, but dugongs never venture into freshwater. They live solely in the coastal waters of the Indian Ocean and the Pacific. Their snout looks more like a vacuum cleaner than a manatee's big nose.

When you see a manatee in the wild, for example while canoing in the Florida keys, don't attempt to hug or even ride them. This sort of harrassment is illegal and can harm the animals. Instead, give them a friendly wave or take a quick picture. Showing respect for the animals should be a no-brainer!