Orphan manatee looking for home

Since Woody, the baby manatee was recovered from the waters off Buttonwood Bay, the calf remains under a twenty-four hour watch at the Coastal Zone Management and Institute. Although Woody was expected to be transferred to Xcaret, Mexico for continued care, today we learn that the mammal will, if all goes well, be sent to Tabasco, Mexico. Nicole Auil, a manatee researcher at C.Z.M.A.I. says recently Woody has had to be treated for colic but now he is doing well.

Nicole Auil, Manatee Researcher

“We found that a couple days after the last interview he was sick; he had colic. This is very common but it’s also fatal. The day after we noticed symptoms of this where he decreased his feeding, and he started to loose his proper buoyancy and passed some gas, we implemented a treatment of medication which will be running for three more days. I think he has been doing much better. He’s drinking a lot more so he has improved since then.”

Q: “The last time we spoke you were looking to send Woody to Xcaret, Mexico but you’ve had a change of plans?”

Nicole Auil

“That’s right, the large percentage owner said that they didn’t want to take Woody because the funds that they had for the manatee project was spent on Hercules and they’re expecting two more manatees from Tabasco, Mexico and they don’t want to spend the extra money on this calf.

We’re looking into other options and one of them is Tabasco in Mexico. We’re uncertain if we have a confirmation because they’ve been having a lot of problems with rains. It’s been raining there for about a month and it’s flooded. It’s a twelve-hour drive and so we would have to arrange for a flight which is more difficult. They haven’t confirmed if they will take it or not.”

Since Woody is expected to remain in the country for another week or so, Auil is asking for continued public support. If you would like to give donations or volunteer your time to monitor the manatee, please call C.Z.M.A.I. at 30719.