Protect Imperiled Manatees And Their Habitat
This April 22nd marks the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day, a worldwide movement to support environmental protection. At Save the Manatee Club, we often hear from people who love manatees and want to do their part to protect them, and Earth Day is a great time to get involved. And with the unfortunate news about record manatee mortality rates from boat strikes in 2019, manatees need your help now more than ever. While the average person is not able to rescue a manatee or enforce habitat protection, there are plenty of ways one can get involved. Whether you see manatees in your backyard or live thousands of miles away, here are several actions you can take to be a voice for the manatees, on Earth Day and every day.
Help Manatees From Home: Join Save the Manatee Club’s grassroots effort to inform policymakers about issues facing manatees. Contact Florida’s Governor and your U.S. Senators and Representatives to tell them you support strong manatee protection measures. The Save the Manatee Club team advocates for these measures, and takes legal action when appropriate, but we need your help. Join our Email Action Network at savethemanatee.org/signup to be notified of manatee issues, and get more ideas on ways you can help at savethemanatee.org/moreways. While you’re there, don’t forget to follow Save the Manatee Club on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to share manatee news with your network.
Share Free Resources: To increase public awareness and education about manatees, Save the Manatee Club offers several free resources. Boaters and those who live on the water can order awareness signs, boat decals, and waterproof manatee protection tip cards. Teachers can request education guides, coloring and activity books, and posters. And those who can donate space in publications or on their website can request custom-sized manatee public service ads to help spread the word. Contact education@savethemanatee.org for more information.
Volunteer: Do you love talking to people about your favorite aquatic mammal? Then you would make a welcome addition to the Save the Manatee Club volunteer team. Help Save the Manatee Club’s outreach efforts by staffing education tables at festivals or giving presentations about manatees. You can also join the Manatee Sighting Network to provide information to researchers, participate in cleanup efforts, or join the Manatee Observer Program to educate and prevent manatee harassment. Live far away from manatee habitat? You can still join the team. Visit savethemanatee.org/volunteer for more information.
Adopt-A-Manatee®: Did you know you could adopt a real, living manatee and help protect manatees and their habitat? Save the Manatee Club’s Adopt-A-Manatee® program features dozens of real manatees around Florida with unique families and histories. Choose from manatees like Howie, a curious winter visitor to Blue Spring State Park, or Ariel, a rescued manatee that resides at Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park. Proceeds from Adopt-A-Manatee® support Save the Manatee’s conservation efforts, including sponsoring manatee rescues, rehabilitation, and releases. Go to savethemanatee.org/adopt for more information.
