EDITORIAL: Manatees Not Yet Ready for Downlisting
Posted on: Thursday, 12 April 2007, 06:00 CDT
By The Miami Herald
Apr. 12--Memo to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: It is far too soon to downlist the manatee to "threatened" from "endangered" as has been proposed. Don't do it.
Once upon a time the manatee enjoyed welldeserved protection under the auspices of both the state and federal governments, which both listed it as "endangered" and therefore entitled to conservation measures.
These measures include enforcing boating speed limits and rigid dock permitting rules in manatee habitats. Besides loss of habitat and injuries from boat propellers, the other major threat to manatees is red tide. That natural phenomenon, which generally appears along Florida's West Coast, seems to be increasing. Some scientists are looking for a link between red tide frequency and the increasing coastal development along the Gulf of Mexico.
Record fatalities
Last year, unfortunately, the misguided Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission voted to downlist the manatee to "threatened." It is proceeding to implement that decision despite the fact that 2006 saw the largest number of manatee deaths thus far -- 417 in all. There were almost that many manatee fatalities in 2005. This does not bode well for an estimated minimum population of 3,300 manatees.
This is true especially given that the U.S. agency's own studies predict that there could be tough times ahead for manatees' survival because of dwindling habitat (think more waterfront condos and marinas on the horizon) and the loss of warm-water havens as aging coastal power plants are shut down.
The Florida wildlife agency also recognized that changing conditions could put manatees at future risk. Given this knowledge, why on Earth would either agency even consider downlisting the sea-going mammal affectionately known as the sea cow?
Protective measures
Authorities from the state and federal agencies promise that downlisting won't lessen enforcement of boating speed limits or controlling dock permitting in manatee habitat. If that's really true, then why downlist at all?
After all, it is not as though the estimate of 3,300 existing manatees represents a figure scientifically arrived at that would prove sufficient to withstand future risks. Further onslaughts of red tide, for instance, or the ever-rising number of motorized boats in Florida's water coupled with extremely uneven speed limit enforcement. Or for that matter, a continued boom in waterfront development that reduces manatee habitats.
Given the risks forecast by scientific studies, manatees should remain on the "endangered" species list with rigorous protective measures by both the state and federal governments.
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Copyright (c) 2007, The Miami Herald
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News.
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Source: The Miami Herald
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