Manatees in Broward County Manatees are large slow-moving marine mammals of the Order Sirenia. The Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris) is a subspecies of the West Indian manatee (Trichechus manatus ).   Manatee or manati? The word "manatee" comes from the Spanish word manati, although the true origination may date from the native Puerto Rican Taino people whose translation means ma (big) nati (chest).   See a manatee/boat near hit!   Endangered listing kept for manatees In December 2007, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) decided not to downlist the Florida Manatee from "endangered" to "threatened" status. Please see our frequently asked questions page or the FWC news release for more information.

(Photo by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From November 15, 2008 until April 2, 2009 there have been 18 manatee mortalities in Broward County.  While not all the necropsy reports are complete, preliminary results are 3 perinatal, 4 natural causes, 3 watercraft related, 6 undetermined (too decomposed), and 2 reports pending.
Broward County Manatee Count Conducting aerial surveys is one of the most successful ways to determine where manatees are in Broward. Periodic helicopter flights allow for the greatest flexibility in speed and altitude to survey all tidally influenced waterways between Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties. Go to the manatee monitoring page for more information.

 

 

 

 

The Manatee Monitoring Advisory Group  is a voluntary group of stakeholders that meet monthly from October through April to discuss manatee issues in Broward County. Meetings are held in the Hearing Room at the Government Center West Building located at 1 N. University Drive, Plantation FL, 33317. The meeting time is from 10:00 a.m. until noon on the upcoming dates listed below.

• November 11, 2009
• December 23, 2009
• January 19, 2010
• February 16, 2010
• March 16, 2010
• April 13, 2010

MANATEE FACTS
	What is a Manatee?
	Where have they been seen in Broward?
BROWARD MANATEE PROTECTION PLAN
	Guidelines
	Manatee Protection Plan
	Boat Slip Availability Status
	Marine Facility Operating License application - PDF (353KB)
	Manatee Sighting and Monitoring
	Broward Boating Study - PDF (1.7MB)
BOATING SAFETY AND MANATEE PROTECTION SPEED ZONES
	Boating Safety Speed Zones - North Broward
	Boating Safety Speed Zones - South Broward
	Manatee Protection Speed Zones
	Speed Zone Enforcement Statistics - Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC)
	Broward Boat Registration Analysis
MANATEE MORTALITY
	Broward Manatee Mortality
	Manatee Mortality Statistics - FWC
OTHER RELATED LINKS
	Florida Manatee - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
	Manatee Program - FWC
	Marine Resources Geographic Information System - Fish and Wildlife Research Institute (select "Manatee" from the Current Map View option)
	Sirenia Project - United States Geological Society
	Marine Animal Rescue Society (MARS)
	Marina Siting - Florida Department of Community Affairs, Division of Community Planning

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For more information, contact the Environmental Protection and Growth Management Department’s Natural Resources Planning and Management Division at 954-519-1284.