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What is the difference between a West Indian manatee and a Florida manatee?
The West Indian manatee is characterized by its greyish or brownish skin, rounded tail, and a set of nails on its forelimbs. Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris) – found off the coasts of the southeastern U.S. and along the Gulf of Mexico.
Is the West Indian manatee native to Florida?
Appearance: Florida manatees are large, aquatic mammals that are native to Florida. Adult manatees are typically 9-10 feet long from snout to tail and weigh around 1,000 pounds; however, they may grow to over 13 feet long and weigh more than 3,500 pounds.
What is another name for the West Indian manatee?
Sometimes known as “sea cow” because it forages on aquatic plants, the West Indian manatee is one of four living species of the aquatic mammal order Sirenia.
What are the 3 types of manatees?
Manatees belong to the mammalian order Sirenia. There are 3 species of manatee: Trichechus inunguis, the Amazonian manatee; Trichechus senegalensis, the West African manatee; and Trichechus manatus, the West Indian manatee.
Are there different types of manatee?
West Indian manatee
Amazonian manateeAfrican manateeTrichehus hesperamazonicus
Manatees/Lower classifications
There are three species of manatee, distinguished primarily by where they live. The West Indian manatee ranges along the North American east coast from Florida to Brazil. The Amazonian manatee species inhabit the Amazon River and the African manatee swims along the west coast and rivers of Africa.
How many different manatees are there?
Manatees/Lower classifications
What kind of animal is the West Indian manatee?
Status: Threatened The West Indian manatee is a large, aquatic mammal. There are two subspecies of West Indian manatees: the Antillean manatee (Trichechus manatus manatus), and the Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris).
What kind of body does a Florida manatee have?
30 manatees). The Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris) is a subspecies of the West Indian manatee (Trichechus manatus manatus). These aquatic mammals have elongated round bodies that taper to a flat, paddle-shaped tail. They have two forelimbs, called flippers, with three to four nails on each flipper.
Why did the West Indian manatee migrate to Florida?
Manatees migrate seasonally to adapt to changing water temperatures. West Indian manatees roam in fresh, brackish, and marine waters throughout Florida, the Greater Antilles, Central America, and South America. Intensive hunting pressures between the 1500s to 1800s reduced the number of manatees.
Is the Florida manatee on the Endangered Species List?
The Florida manatee is a subspecies of the West Indian manatee, which, until recently, was listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).