Marine Mammals
 

Manatee Research

Research Faculty

 Jon Moore, Ph.D.
561-799-8025
jmoore@fau.edu

Susan L. Richardson, Ph.D.
772-242-2463
richards@fau.edu

 

Save Our Seas plate

A portion of this research is funded by proceeds from Florida's Protect Wild Dolphins specialty license plate, granted by the Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute Foundation.

To assess the ecological consequences of anthropogenic impacts on Florida’s coastal habitats, integrated technologies are required to monitor key species and environmental correlates. Manatees are a Florida icon whose habitat has been radically altered by humans through dredging canals, destroying seagrass beds, and creating artificial warm-water habitat. Manatees appear particularly sensitive to water temperature regime with the projected loss of warm-water sources (i.e., power plants) on the one hand and the devastating effects of winter cold fronts on the other contributing to listing the manatee as threatened and “having a very high risk of extinction.”

manatee manatees

Preliminary evidence indicates that the Harbor Branch channel plays a vital role as a thermal refuge, with >100 manatees congregated in the basin during recent winter cold fronts. The goal of this research is to develop an integrated system using existing (photo-identification) and new (remote sensing) techniques to continuously monitor manatee behavior and habitat.



Additional Information
Florida Atlantic's Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute engages with the community through the Ocean Discovery Visitors Center and the Ocean Science Lecture Series. Harbor Branch’s research and outreach programs translate marine science in order to provide solutions that improve economies and quality of life for coastal communities.
Address
Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute
Florida Atlantic University
5600 US 1 North
Fort Pierce, FL 34946