Florida manatee

Fun Facts

Florida manatees are native to the United States, as seen in both the fossil records and in Native American sites. Depending on the time of year they can be frequently found in Florida, Alabama, and Georgia. On very rare occasions Florida manatees have been seen as far north as Massachusetts!

Although manatees have the nickname “seacow”, their closest relatives are elephants and hyraxes.​

Manatees were once thought to be mermaids by early sailors, including Christopher Columbus, who described the “mermaids” as less beautiful than he imagined with masculine faces. In fact, manatees belong to the order Sirenia, which derives its name from the sirens (or mermaids) of Greek mythology.