By Lucy Whitmarsh
Some 3,807 manatees were counted in January by the Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, a record high number since it began the annual surveys in 1991.
The survey found 589 manatees in Palm Beach County. Buddy Powell, a biologist at the Sea to Shore Alliance, an environmental organization based in St. Petersburg, said that an aerial survey in February spotted about 400 manatees tightly collected in the output of the Florida Power and Light plant in Riviera Beach. The mammals, he says, have been going there to get warm “for more than 30 years.” Jim Reid, a biologist with the U.S. Geological Survey, said that the animals tend to congregate in large numbers around the FPL plant when it is very cold, and then spread out when it is warmer.
“While FPL is often a stopover point for those on their way further south, it is also a destination for many,” Reid said. “Not only do they get warmth from the discharge of the plant, but the vicinity of Port of Palm Beach, in general, is warmed by the Gulf Stream.”
Manatees are frequently found at Peanut Island, the Earman River near Northlake Boulevard, and the Lake Worth Lagoon. They collect in the northern part of the lagoon, which is also warmed by the Gulf Stream, and they often forage in the southern part. According to Reid, they commonly look for food at Munyon Island and south in Manalapan.
“During warm-weather periods, they go on mini-migrations north to the Jupiter Inlet and the South Indian River,” Reid said.
Due to a current revamping of the FPL plant in Riviera Beach, the emissions there have been greatly reduced, even though the plant is required to release output when the water temperature falls to 61 degrees. According to Dr. Holly Edwards at the FWRI, many of the manatees that collect around the plant have gone south, most likely to the plants in Broward.
“That is a good sign,” she said. “Often, manatees get so used to the warm water at a plant that they become fixated and do not know to go elsewhere. The fact that many are going south shows that they know of alternatives.”
According to 2009 Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission records, as of Feb. 22, 29 mortalities statewide were caused by cold stress, making it the leading cause of death for that time period. That is 30 percent of the total of 95 mortalities, the highest in six years. The average figure for cold stress deaths over the past four years during that time period is 21 percent. The FWRI reports seven deaths in Palm Beach County, two resulting from cold stress.
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