Manatees are one of Florida’s most iconic species, but they are facing unprecedented threats right in our backyard. Largely due to human-caused algal blooms, Indian River Lagoon-dwelling manatees have lost a critical food source: seagrass. As a result, manatees in the lagoon were dying of starvation at a record rate, leading U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to declare an Unusual Mortality Event in March 2021. While another facet of the East Coast Zoological Foundation’s conservation team, Restore Our Shores, is working to bring back seagrass to the lagoon through pilot planting projects and the construction of two seagrass nurseries, we began our own manatee rehabilitation journey to help combat the crisis.         

This state-of-the-art rehabilitation center at the Zoo is designed to provide immediate care to stable, non-critical manatee patients in need of additional monitoring, weight gain or better weather conditions for release. We are incredibly proud to be able to offer our expertise and advanced veterinary care to this species, especially as our region has been at the epicenter of a historic wave of manatee deaths before. 

Our facility has the capacity to care for up to six manatee patients at a time, depending on their size. The complex is also equipped with a walk-in cooler to store manatee diets, a state-of-the-art life support system to keep our pools running smoothly and a transport truck ready for any rescues and releases. There are also several cameras installed to allow our animal care team the option to monitor patients 24/7. We are grateful that this facility was made possible by a grant from Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC).      

Learn all about our newest manatee patients on our blog.