DATELINE: 18 November 2002

FLORIDA MANATEES GET DIVER-FREE SANCTUARY

Endangered manatees have been granted a 2 acre 'disturbance free zone' in the Homosassa River, Florida after concerns that the creatures were suffering too much attention from divers, swimmers and visitors on boats.
The main danger to the slow moving manatees usually comes from the propellors of boats, and speed limits and warnings have been put in place in many Florida rivers. However, the warm waters in the area around the Homosassa River is a popular gathering place for manatees over the winter months and their presence has attracted enormous interest.
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, together with other environmental agencies, has lobbied for greater protection of the manatees. Around 80 manatees are killed by boats every year.
The new manatee-only zone is marked out by buoys, and hefty fines and prison sentences await people trespassing into the zone. The legislation is not designed to ban diving with manatees, and dive trips to the area will continue, but at least the manatees can now escape to a peaceful haven when it all gets too much.