Visiting Manatees

Along Florida’s Gulf Coast are several important winter refuges for Florida manatees, and Crystal River is one of the best-known places to see them. Manatees are extremely sensitive to cold water, so when temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico drop during the winter, large numbers move into the area’s spring-fed rivers and refuges. I was surprised to learn that Florida manatees occasionally travel as far north as Virginia and even Massachusetts, although sightings that far north are unusual.

During the colder months, the natural springs around Crystal River provide manatees with an important source of warm water. The springs remain around 72°F (22°C) throughout the year, allowing the animals to escape colder coastal waters. There were enough manatees around that I even saw groups of them swimming past while I was standing near places where people were fishing.

Wildlife Around Crystal River

Manatees weren’t the only wildlife around Crystal River. Pelicans were extremely common, and I also saw plenty of other birds around the water. A guy who was fishing nearby told me that I had just missed seeing a bald eagle.

Swimming With Manatees

The best way for me to experience the manatees was to get out on the water and eventually into it. Signs throughout the area warn boaters about manatees and require slow speeds in protected zones. Boat strikes have long been a serious threat to Florida manatees, and scars from collisions and propellers can be seen on many animals.

Manatees have faced other major threats as well, including severe red-tide events and losses of seagrass habitat. Their slow reproductive rate makes major population losses particularly difficult to recover from.

When I got into the water, I noticed that visibility varied dramatically. Some areas were fairly clear while others were so murky that I could almost swim directly into a manatee before seeing it. The spring-fed water provided some beautifully clear areas, but the manatees often stayed close to the surface rather than conveniently posing in the clearest water.

There were also schools of fish throughout the water. I saw some individual fish that were several feet long, although the visibility was too poor for me to get any decent photographs of the largest ones.

I didn’t realize how huge manatees could be until I saw them in person. Despite their size, they were remarkably gentle. Some seemed completely indifferent to people and wanted to be left alone, while others were much more curious and would approach swimmers on their own.

One manatee approached me and began rolling onto its back almost like a dog. The experience was completely different from simply watching them from shore because I could see how curious some individual animals could be when they approached on their own.

Another manatee was so playful that it actually grabbed my leg and held onto it. Afterwards it brushed against me with its face and circled around me before eventually moving on. Their enormous size still deserves respect, even when an animal appears gentle and curious.

Life on a Manatee

This large manatee had a considerable amount of algae growing across its back, far more than I noticed on most of the others. Small fish gathered around it and appeared to be feeding from the growth on its skin.

Coming Up for Air

Since manatees are mammals, they have to surface to breathe. When they’re active they surface much more frequently, although they can remain underwater considerably longer while resting. Watching them move between the clear spring water and the surface was one of the best wildlife experiences I’ve had in Florida, and it’s something I’d definitely do again.