Opportunistic carnivory by Florida manatees (<I>Trichechus manatus latirostris</I>)

Abstract

Abstract The Florida manatee ( Trichechus manatus lati-rostris ) is one of the most endangered marinemammals in the US To protect this species, it isimportant to understand the feeding ecology tode” ne critical habitats. Manatees generally are con-sidered to be strictly herbivious mammals that onlyincidentally consume animal species. This conceptis based on the preponderence of freshwater vegeta-tion, seagrasses, and algae that is found in moststomach content and fecal analyses.In the present study, manatees were observedfeeding in areas of the Indian River Lagoon in VeroBeach and Fort Pierce, Florida, USA during Juneto August 2001. Most manatees were observed tobe feeding on seagrasses and algae; however, ontwo occasions, manatees were observed apparentlypreferentially consuming invertebrates that wereattached to a dock. Although some ” brous algaewere present on the dock structure, the majority ofbiomass present was made up of invertebrates.Manatees were heard crunching invertebrateshells and seen pulling animals, such as tunicates,into their mouths. These observations suggestthat manatees actively, rather than incidentally,consume invertebrates in some cases.Key words: manatee,