| Endangered Species: Manatee |
Christiansburg elem
Submitted by: Froggy, Grade 5th
Christiansburg. VA, U.S.A
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Manatee |
Why Study This Topic?
I would like to figure out about how many Manatees are left
on the earth and what people may do in the future to help these animals.
I would like to know about how much they weigh and how long they are.I
would also like to know about how much they eat in a day.I'm intersted
in these animals because I think they look like mermaids.I'm interested
in them also because they live in the Florida Everglades.I want to find
more information on these wonderful creatures.
What Was Already Known
I alredy knew that they are called
sea cows just as much as manatee.I alsoknew that they are related to elephant
and that they onley ate vegtable's and there lossing there habtat. I also
knew that the manatee is very large but I did not know how big.I also knew
that they lived in rivers.
Search for Information
I searched at Yahoo.com and Netsearch and also the class last year on
Mrs. Ney's Web page. I'm going to try to find more information on Yahooligans.
I'm also going to find more in the computerlab.
Description of Plant or Animal
The manatee is a large animal and weighs several tons. These manatees
are about 13 feet long and eat more then a 100 pounds of under water plants
in a day. Their weight is about 3,500 . They are aquatic mammals have paddle-like
feet, forelimbs,no hindlimbs and a flattend muzzles.
Sometimes the manatee is called a sea cow. Most manatees live in
rivers and bays in Florida. In South America, manatees have been used to
keep water ways free of kelp.
A manatee has dark gray skin with bristy hairs all over its body.
Its front legs are paddle shaped,and its tail is rounded.
Habitat Requirements
The Manatee speeds slowly on aquatic vegetation. It may spend up to
eight hours a day grazing. It has a large appetite and eats large amounts
of underwater plants. My animal doesn't need to go fa,r beacause it lives
in the water. It just opens its mouth and lets water flow in.
That is how they drink.
Adaptations
My animal has one enemy, and that one enemy alone
is man. Man pollutes and trashes the area that the manatees live in. Another
thing that man does is ride boats in itshabitat and puts scars up and down
the manatee's back. Sometimes a propellor gets stuck on its head, and it
could kill the manatee. The manatee has a light, gray skin.The manatee
has soft texture, and its color is to camouflage it in the dark lagoons
where it lives. But I still don't know why it has camouflage
if humans are its only enemy.
Reasons for Endangerment
For many years the manatee pupulation has been
threatened by humans. As tourism contiunes to flourish in Florida, manatees
are always in danger by humans doing things on propose. If these
gentle water mammals do not receive some help from the public, extinction
of the Manatee may be the result. Carelesssness is responible for many
accidents and deaths of the Manatee today. Things such as plastic six pack
holders, plastic bags, fishing line, and hooks are harmful to the Manatee.
The manatee can become tangled in these things or swallow them, resulting
in infection and sometimes deaths. The Manatee also can get caught up in
crab-trap lines or the other gear used by fisherman.
Restoration Actions
Since there is not much that
can be done about all the people in Florida, trying hard to help
the manatee is concentrating on the ways to educate the people and
involve people in positive ways.Today, many schools in Florida include
manatee education in there curriculm. Children are encouraged to do all
that they can do for the manatee.
What Was Learned
The background of my animal is a large
under water mammal that eats tons and tons of food in a day.
The problem of the manatee is that all the people in Florida are taking
boats threw the manatees habitat and now it has paid off and there are
few left. What needs to be done is that the people need to stop and put
up signs.
Conclusions From Research
Yes, I did have fun searching and going on different
web sites such as Zoom.Dinosaures and seaworld, Photo.net and nature.com.
I think it is real fun searching in the on the web site and being able
to have the privilege to work on the computer and be filmed by the Virginia
Tech. Yes I think I do have some confidence about all of the seach and
fun things that our class gets to do.I had a little experience about the
manatee but not much. I had alot of fun going on the computer and finding
lots of information and reading about all of this stuff and finding out
about the manatees.
Bibliography
Silversten,Robert (1995) The Manatee Millbrook Press, Brookfield,
Connecticutt
http://www.cep.unep.org/kids/cb08.html
http://www.bagheera.com/inthewild/van_anim_manatee.htm
http://www.xtalwind.net/~cfa/
http://www.manatee.nu/pictures.htm
http://www.yahooligans.com/Science_and_Oddities/Living_Things/Animals/Mammals/Marine_Mammals/Manatees/
http://search.yahooligans.com/search/ligans?p=Manatees&y=y&e=8744401&f=0%3A2718085%3A2719500%3A2718073%3A2732779%3A2738411%3A9007917%3A2738433%3A8514343%3A8514432%3A8744401&r=Science+and+Oddities%02Living+Things%02Animals%02Mammals%02Marine+Mammals%02Manatees
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Christiansburg Elementary |
Last updated on January 25, 2000
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