West Indian manatee  (Trichechus manatus)

Range

The West Indian manatee has a wide distribution, from the mid-Atlantic region of the United States, throughout the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico, south to coastal parts of northeastern and central-eastern South America. The Florida manatee subspecies occurs from eastern Texas to Virginia in the summer, but occupies waters of Florida and southeastern Georgia all year-round. The Antillean manatee occupies the remainder of the species range, from southwestern Texas to South America, but does not have a continuous distribution (2).

View a distribution map for this species at UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre.

Habitat

The West Indian manatee inhabits freshwater, estuarine, and marine waters, where it can be found in near-shore waters, canals, rivers, estuaries and saltwater bays (2) (6). Antillean manatees tend to be found further from the shore than their Florida relatives, and distribution and local use patterns throughout the range are influenced by access to freshwater areas, which are used for drinking (7).

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