- Moreton Bay,Australia
- Brazil
- Hervey Bay, Australia
- Amsterdam, NL
- Arnhem, NL
- Beauval, FR
- Berlin, DE
- N�rnberg, DE
- Odense, DK
- WEB CAM!
- Crystal River
- Spanish Bay Resort
- Ambergris Caye
- Gales Point
- Belize City
- Manatee Lagoon
- Mote Marine Lab
- Lee County
- Cincinati Zoo
- Columbus Zoo
- Matlacha
- Fort Myers
- Apollo Beach
- Homosassa Springs
- Lowry Park
- Blue Spring
- Manatee Springs
- Miami Seaquarium
- SeaWorld, FL & CA
- SFM Bradenton FL
- Florida Map
Manatees and dugongs, also known as sea cows, sea pigs, or mermaids, are endangered species belonging to the scientific Order Sirenia. Only 4 sirenian species remain today!
Three extant manatees, the West Indian manatee (Trichechus manatus), the West African manatee (Trichechus senegalensis), and the Amazonian manatee (Trichechus inunguis), inhabit the rivers, estuaries, and coastal marine areas of the Atlantic Ocean basin.
The only extant dugong (Dugong dugon) inhabits coastal marine areas of the Indian and Pacific Ocean basins. The extinct Steller's seacow (Hydrodamalis gigas) inhabited the very cold coastal marine areas of the northern Pacific Ocean.
Roll your curser over the map (near the species name or habitat) and then click on the map to jump to more information about each sirenian species.
Local and international laws protect the only four living species, but manatee and dugong populations are fragmented, threatened, and/or endangered everywhere they exist. They are vulnerable to extinction because of habitat loss and other negative impacts related to human population growth and coastal development. Like dolphins and whales, manatees and dugongs are totally aquatic mammals that never leave the water - not even to give birth. As the only marine mammal herbivores (unlike the other marine mammals such as dolphins, whales, seals, sealions, sea otters, walruses, and polar bears - which are carnivores) sirenians eat plants (seagrasses and other aquatic vegetation). Unlike many other marine mammals, manatees and dugongs have an extremely low metabolism and zero tolerance for cold water. The combination of these factors means that sirenians are restricted to warm shallow coastal waters, estuaries, and rivers, with healthy ecosystems that support large amounts of seagrass and/or other vegetation.