Our Habitat continues our series on Jamaica’s endangered species with a look this week at the West Indian Manatee.

ALSO called the sea cow, the West Indian Manatee (Trichechus manatus) is a large, gray aquatic mammal with a body that tapers to a flat, paddle-shaped tail.

It has two forelimbs, called flippers, with three to four nails, while its head and face is wrinkled with whiskers on the snout.

Its closest land relative is the elephant and the hyrax, a small, gopher-sized mammal.

The species, meanwhile, is said to be related to the West African manatee, the Amazonian manatee, the dugong, and to the Steller’s sea cow, which was hunted to extinction in 1768.

The West Indian manatee grows to some 9.8 feet in length and weighs between 800 and 1,200 pounds.

Reproduction

The reproductive rate for manatees is slow, with females not reaching sexual maturity until about five years of age, and males, at nine years of age. At the same time, only a single calf is born, on average, every two to five years. Twins are rare. The gestation period is about a year, with mothers nursing their young for up to two years.

Home

The West Indian manatee lives in shallow waters off the coast or in rivers. They may be found off the coast of the US and as far south as Brazil.

Diet

West Indian manatees feed primarily on sea grasses, which they consume in large quantities since they are not very nutritious. In fact, they are said to eat between 10 and 15 per cent of their body weight daily in vegetation. They are also known to eat small fish.

Threats

The sea cow has no natural predators and are said to live up to 60 years or more. Indeed, most West Indian manatee deaths are the result of human action. Not only are they hunted in some places for food, the species are also harmed in boating accidents and through water pollution that destroys their food sources.

Status

There are an estimated 3,000 West Indian manatees left in the US.

Sources: Save the Manatee Club Inc at

www.savethemanatee.org/manfcts.htm;

The Big Zoo at

www.thebigzoo.com/Animals/West_Indian_Manatee.asp