Second manatee killed by boat
On Friday a manatee was found dead off West Landivar. An autopsy revealed it had died after being run over by a boat. On Saturday another manatee was hit and the body was seen floating by B.T.L. Park on Sunday. Today personnel from the Fisheries Department and the Coastal Zone Management Authority and Institute pulled the bloated body of an adult female manatee from the water. The agencies are asking boat operators to be careful since the mammals are mating in the area.
Nicole Auil, Manatee Researcher
“There are several propeller chop marks on the right side of the tail and that leads into an open wound where her intestines have fallen out. And so from external exam, if I weren’t going to open it, I would say it was hit by a boat and that’s what caused it to die.
There are mating herds around and with that, it increases the susceptibility of getting hit because they are travelling in large groups and are not necessarily being as alert to motor engines as they would be alone, because they are driven by mating. So we would ask that you please drive slowly around the Belize City area, from the airport, Bella Vista, Belama, all the way up to Vista del Mar.
The Coastal Zone Management Authority and Institute, through the Manatee Project, we saw the need to develop a stranding network. A stranding is any animal that is in distress and needs assistance. So it could be a calf without a mother or an injured animal that’s alive or a dead manatee, or a dead animal would constitute a stranding.”
If you see a manatee or any other sea animal like a dolphin or turtle in distress or find a dead one, please contact the Stranding Network at 0-800-MANATEE. The Stranding Network was formed in April and is comprised of NGOs, government department officials and is spearheaded by the Coastal Zone Management Authority and Institute.
