Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service is seeking any information on the person responsible for carving TRUMP on the back of a manatee spotted near Blue Hole Spring in the Homosassa River.
Federal Law provides for financial rewards in such cases. Additional rewards will soon follow from other groups.
A $5,000 reward is also posted by The Center for Biological Diversity. Org
Please contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office in Jacksonville.
Or Save The Manatee in Maitland FL.
Please be assured your confidentiality will be respected by them.
The perpetrators of this crime will be pursued by Federal Authorities and brought to Federal Court for this truly despicable act.
Yet another sad day in our nation.
Captain Mark and his outraged manatee crew.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

Manateeman,
I came across this story in the news and immediately thought of you and your “sign offs”.
I sincerely hope they find the responsible party and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law. It takes a seriously deranged person to perpetrate such an act.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

As someone who has gotten into fights with people who
leave their dogs in the car on hot summer days
and who 45 years ago had the experience of swimming with many
Manatee during a college bio field trip,
Prosecution to the fullest extent of the law is not enough
I say, cut their balls off
Sorry but I just cant stomach cretins that are cruel to animals.
Neil

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

I agree that it is despicable to molest manatees (or any other wild animals), and that the perps here should be prosecuted.

HOWEVER, it does not seem in this case that the word was actually "carved" into the animal's skin, or that the manatee was actually harmed. It looks like just algae was scraped off. See here: https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article...-florida-crime

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

^^^^

Aww, DH, there you go again, messing up a really good story with observed facts...

Jim

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

I believe the article I saw said “scratched” into it’s back.
Regardless be it “carved”, “scratched”, or “scraped”; still unacceptable.

I stand by the assessment that the person or persons are deranged and deserving of prosecution to the full extent of the law.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

I agree completely.

Just trying to make the discourse more factual.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

Ha, ha. Well, it's still a shocking story, even with the correct facts. Thanks to Manateeman for posting about it.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

Yeap, funny how a forum like this sits quietly in the back of the mind. With some bemusement I followed the manatee sign offs on here but then as a result was also immediately reminded of same when I read that news article. Outrage quickly followed by "must post something on CF".

As a species on this planet we should be thoroughly ashamed of ourselves. We have now come to a point where I would not be able to say anymore which problem to tackle first: the widespread cruelty to animals everywhere, the layer of plastic now covering the entire globe, the levels of CO2 in the atmosphere, the complete expropriation of other species' habitats, the proliferation of nuclear weapons... and that does not even include the misery we are imposing on our own kind!

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

The only part I find truly depressing about our current situation is how many humans are still in complete denial of our impact. It makes remediation and finding balance on earth very difficult since their is not a real cohesive agreement.

This is a lot of coverage for a singular act of cruelty (although not denying its worth!), anyone seen the mass extermination of pig videos due to covid in the US? They steam them alive by the thousands.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

Oddly, although widely reported* in the media, I cannot find any ‘official’ mention of the story on (either) the USFWS (Federal) nor FWS (Florida) news sites.
US ➥ https://www.fws.gov/news/
Fla ➥ https://myfwc.com/news/

* As originating from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The Center for Biological Diversity said it was offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to the conviction of the person, or people, responsible.
➥ https://biologicaldiversity.org/w/ne...ck-2021-01-11/

According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Manatees are also protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972, the Endangered Species Act of 1973, and the Florida Manatee Sanctuary Act of 1978. It is illegal to feed, harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, annoy, or molest manatees, and harassment of the species is a Class A federal criminal offense, that is punishable by a $50,000 fine, and up to one year in prison.

If you have information on the person(s) who committed this federal crime please call the
Wildlife Alert Hotline: 888-404-3922

Video ➥ https://twitter.com/i/status/1348745936499982339

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

Unfortunately these animals are killed/maimed by props of boats failing to slow down in known areas where these slow moving animals exist..

https://www.thedodo.com/boats-injure...368810374.html

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

I agree, leave the animal kingdom out of it. Although I would suggest burning and looting should take a higher priority. Since the manatee was obviously not harmed, (algae scraped not carved)maybe they should spend more time on these idiots who think a manatee zone means keep it under 40 kph! But I suppose since they have no consideration for their fellow humans why be concerned about their fellow mammals.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

This might actually lead to fewer future manatee collisions as those careless power boaters slow down in the hopes of spotting the famous name.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

I would agree. The media is making this sound like they cut it into the skin. Do not get me wrong, whoever did this should face the FULL force of the law. The media is trying to sensationalize this into something larger than it is and the people who have a hatred for the President are all too willing to jump on board.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

Worse than scratching a word in algae on an animal is, imho, the severe exageration.

"Carving ... The perpetrators of this crime will be pursued by Federal Authorities and brought to Federal Court for this truly despicable act.
Yet another sad day in our nation."

The sad thing is how you choose to report this story and some of the replies. People numb themself and, in the end, wildlife protection will suffer. Acc. to wikipedia it's not the (somewhat dump) scratching which harms this rather ugly animal but:

"The main causes of death for manatees are human-related issues, such as habitat destruction and human objects. Their slow-moving, curious nature has led to violent collisions with propeller-driven boats and ships. Some manatees have been found with over 50 scars on them from propeller blades."

A.o. if you propeller-drive around in Florida, aren't you then a bigger danger to these seacows than what has been done here and you should direct your outrage toward yourself or your fellow boater?
Major Tom and his scarred magatee crew :biggrin:

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

This might actually lead to fewer future manatee collisions as those careless power boaters slow down in the hopes of spotting the famous name.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

But I think the manatee WAS harmed. They are very sensitive creatures, and mishandling one of them like that would be traumatic and harmful even if there is no direct physical injury.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

Looks to me like an idiotic prank by an immature individual. According to the story it says:

Regardless, the perpetrators are guilty of a federal offense "punishable by up to one year in prison and a $50,000 fine." They should be caught and brought to justice.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

An obvious antifa false flag operation....... just like last week. Everyone knows that Republicans are law abiding and would never break glass, trespass or assault the Blue Line, much less abuse a manatee.

I was surprised by how many antifa in the Capitol were older men with grey beards. They usually wear masks so you can’t tell. Scary!

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

First and foremost - I agree the individual(s) should be fined/penalized if found and it is unacceptable behavior. But like others I can't stand the way things are reported so often with words that are chosen to reflect an edge to the story that may not actually be there.
I mean, is it possible that the Manatee actually liked his back being scratched and that is why they were able to do what they did? I don't know and am not saying that was the case at all. But to automatically go to the point that this Manatee is now traumatized and physically harmed also seems like a bit of a jump.

Nature is indeed fragile, but it is also very resilient.

What boggles my mind as much as anything else to this story is why would someone bother to do that? What possible motivation could there have been?
Did someone think it was a good advertisement for the candidate of their choice? Maybe someone sneaky thought it would get someone else in trouble like when my sister wrote my name in ink on my mom's sewing table. Or maybe someone just thinks Trump looks like a manatee and thought they were being funny. :/

Regardless - bad prank, disrespectful, and very juvenile. Definitely worthy of appropriate discipline.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

It's wrong and idiotic. The guy should be charged if found.

But this is an excellent example of the media twisting the facts to meet an agenda. This was purposely written in an attempt to incite anger far beyond the actual idiotic act deserves.

If they had written a factual story that algae had been scrapped off to read trump, most non-partisans would have found it weird, a little disturbing but likely no extreme let's lock him up for 50yrs outrage. They purposely used the word "carved", to leave the image of Rambo pulling out his combat knife and digging it deeply into the poor animals back. The media is playing word games in an attempt to incite the public.

If your really worried about saving the manatees, chip in some money to fund outreach programs teaching boaters about how propellers injure and kill manatees. That will go much further in saving the manatee.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime XD
 

If you ever see a large herd of Matatees You might be shocked at the number of them chopped and maimed by boat propellers. Don’t know about scratching the back of a friendly manatee.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

The most serious injury the manatee suffered was not to the skin.
It was the disruption of their method to prevent death from cold water.
Manatees have incredibly strong skin, so strong, Native American tribes used it as material for shields. Manatees were considered, like turtles and crocodiles, sacred foods to be eaten only in times of emergency as in after a hurricane.
Something like 90 % of all manatees have been hit by propellers. They survive deep cuts in an environment full of very nasty marine microbes. They survive because they have an incredible immune system. The vaccine for papilloma in humans began as a study of the almost perfect immunity manatees had to this virus. This crime was not and is not about scratching, cutting, tattooing carving ...what ever dang word you want or don’t want to use...I did not choose carve...it was the descriptive told to me by one of the first people on scene. Marine mammal scientists know how resistant manatees are to skin trauma.
The center point of this criminal action is the potential fatal result of disturbing manatees in winter as they try to survive the cold.
They don’t just lie there like logs because they are stupid or slow. They are not fat. They actually have very little body fat and can simply die from the cold.
They rest in groups. If you frighten one, they all react. They loose energy and that can be fatal. That’s the crime here. That will be the center of the charges.
Please stop all this nonsense about how it was reported, or what word ended up on this manatee. Please, just stop the silly comment.
The preservation of manatees and manatee habitat is in our best interest for our preservation. it’s just that simple. It’s not a crime against them, it was a crime against all of us.
Captain Mark

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

I wonder how many manatees Mark has hit with his 60 ft yacht? We see the big draft boats hit them in the shallow water. They can't dive deep enough. Boats need to almost stop when they are near.
The manatees are in the springs because the water is warm. 72 degrees year round. This was obviously a kids prank even though it should never have happened. This really shows how to over dramatize any news. Which seems to happen every day now. I'm really surprised that it stayed still long enough to write that on its back. The letters are near perfect. Maybe it was done by another manatee, you know a Trump supporting manatee.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

He probably liked it. I was just sitting here thinking that I can't count the number of times I watched my boat moving around at the dock while a manatee rubbed its back up and down the hull.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

I read that the "carving" of the manatee's skin was actually removal of alge similar to using a finger to write on a steamed up mirror. Challange: has anyone got a source that claimed actual damage to the manatee's skin? I stand ready to be corrected.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

Having swum with manatees at Blue Springs I can personally attest to the fact that they are not disturbed by the presence of people nearby. It is obvious that any above average law school student could beat a prosecutor who is stupid enough to actually bring charges. I repeat, this is just more fake news.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

While standing neck deep cleaning scum from my waterline I was nuzzled by a manatee a number of times as he followed me around the boat eating the scum that floated free. Am I guilty ?

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

The definition of an “ad hominem” fallacy in logic is when one attacks the man rather than from the position of facts or argument presented from evidence.
It is usually the result from frustration in formulating a succinct response during a debate.
Captain Mark and his educated manatee crew.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

Well, I think you need to be careful with the term "deranged". Could be grounds for an insanity defense.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

Last count there where over 400 in the spring run @ Blue Springs..

While there are manatees in the Spring there is no swimming/diving..thats Blue Springs policy.

However at Hamossa Springs,where this incident occurred,there are private charter groups that entertain “Swimming with the Manatees” programs.

https://www.snorkelwithmanatees.com/soft-encounters/


Clay AA3JY
s/v Tango
Halifax Harbor
Daytona Beach

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

Remember, "You can't believe everything you read and only half of what you hear." Never more true than today.
If any of this is true, and certainly crazier things are going on, I have no sympathy for anyone who uses animals for their political agenda and can only hope the Manatee who endured this insult will seek revenge!
R-E-S-P-E-C-T: A distant memory seldom practiced by the few.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

I think the biggest damage to the manatee ( if only algae damage) might be the shame the label brings.:devil:
Surprised it hasnt karked already:wink:

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

The law reads: "It is unlawful for any person, at any time, intentionally or negligently, to annoy, molest, harass, or disturb any manatee."


I wasn't there, so can't say whether you are guilty or not. By your description, it doesn't sound like it.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

Some controversy on how this incident was reported:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/fa...da/ar-BB1cHjaY


Note that it wasn't Mark who came up with the word "carved"; so let's keep it respectful please.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

Apologies if my post was interpreted as disrespectful of the manatee.
I'm with the testicular removal crowd if there was any carving done.
Random cruelty is despicable.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

Imagine if someone wrote “ help “. “ save me”. Or “ global warming is killing me”
The news story would have been very different. As well as many responses to it.

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

Scroll down and watch ‘em @ Blue Springs ‘Live Cam’.

https://www.floridastateparks.org/pa...ing-state-park

Re: Feds Seek Info on Manatee Crime
 

Well, obviously, the people who do that, are deranged and crazy, as well.