TAMPA, Fla. – For four straight years, more manatees were found dead in Florida because they were hit by boats than ever before.
That trend will break in 2020, but not on account of any good news for the state’s signature threatened species.To the contrary, researchers were tracking more manatee deaths than usual this year.
As of Dec. 11, at least 562 manatees had died in Florida, according to the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. That was nearly two dozen more than the five-year average for the same time period.“We did not have mass mortality, but manatees face the threat that they always do,” said Martine de Wit, a veterinarian in the state’s marine mammal lab. “That is watercraft issues.”At least 88 manatees had died because of.