Florida Fish & Wildlife scientists perform a necropsy on a manatee.
Boats caused higher than average manatee deaths in 2019, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
As of July 9, the FWC reports 89 boat-related manatee deaths. That’s much higher than the five-year average of 55, according to a report in the Orlando Sentinel.
While the overall death total so far for 2019 is lower than 2018, the boat-related fatalities make up the largest portion of this year’s deaths – 27 percent of the 324 total, the Sentinel reported.
In 2017, after this video was made, the manatee’s status was changed from endangered to threatened under the Endangered Species Act, after coming back from a population low of 1,267 in 1991, according to the federal Fish & Wildlife Service.
