On Wednesday, July 2nd, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) announced their to revisit the status of the West Indian manatee and its subspecies, the Florida manatee and Antillian manatee, on the endangered species list. The review could reclassify manatees to being simply "threatened" instead of endangered.
The review follows a lawsuit followed on behalf of Save Crystal River, Inc., an organization advocating for boater's rights in Florida waters inhabited by manatees.
Aquatic biologist Patrick Rose questions the FWS review because manatee nesting pairs still fall short of 10,000, and marine erosion has caused an increase in deaths in recent years. "This is a really bad time [to delist manatees] because there is too much uncertainty, too much at risk, going forward," he said.
Please sign the petition to urge the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to keep manatees on the endangered species list.
We, the undersigned, are concerned with your recent decision to review the status of the West Indian manatee and its subspecies, the Florida manatee and Antillian manatee, potentially downgrading their status as endangered to simply "threatened."
We understand that the review follows a lawsuit on behalf of Save Crystal River, Inc., an organization advocating for boater's rights in Florida waters inhabited by manatees.
Aquatic biologist Patrick Rose questions the FWS decision to review because manatee nesting pairs still fall short of 10,000, and marine erosion has caused an increase in deaths in recent years. "This is a really bad time [to delist manatees] because there is too much uncertainty, too much at risk, going forward," he said.
We respectfully urge you to put the health of manatees above boating interest groups and reconsider your decision to review manatees' status as endangered. Please keep manatees on the endangered species list. Thank you for taking the time to read and consider our petition.
