Manatee by Lisa Manatees are gray. They are 10 to 12 feet long. They weigh 1500 pounds. They have good eyesight and good hearing. Their tails are flat like a pancake. They have two flippers with nails. They have whiskers.

There are 4 kinds of manatees: Amazonian West African West Indian dugongs Manatees live in the same types of water as other animals. They live in warm shallow coastal waters and estuaries and slow moving rivers in warm parts of the world. They are mammals which means they are warm blooded. When it gets cold, they swim to warmer waters in the south. Manatees are herbivores which means they eat plants such as water hyacinths, manatee grass, algae, turtle grass, and mangrove leaves. Manatee babies are born alive. The calf stays with its mother for about two years.

Manatees are endangered because they are not fast enough to get out of the way as boats come near them. They get hit and sometimes killed by the boats. I think we should put more signs in the water so boats won't hit the manantees.

How I became interested in manatees! "I saw a manatee poster in Mrs. Sosic's room. I thought to myself, "Hey! I'd like to do some research about this animal!" It looked interesting. I never knew about manatees before this. I'm glad I did this research. I learned more stuff about manatees! Click here to see my Ganges River dolphin page!"

bsosic@orange.k12.oh.us