CINCINNATI — Planning a trip the zoo soon? Well, the Cincinnati Zoo welcomed three new manatees this past weekend.
The zoo worked alongside ZooTampa and members of the MAnatee Rescue & Rehabilitation Partnership (MRP), which is a group dedicated to the rescue, rehabilitation, release and monitoring of manatees.
The three manatees will only be in Cincinnati temporarily.
"The three young females, Soleil, Calliope, and Piccolina arrived in Manatee Springs on Saturday and are doing well," said Kim Scott, Cincinnati Zoo's curator of mammals.
Scott said the manatees were rescued by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) from different areas of southwest Florida in the spring and summer of 2021. Since then, they've been living at ZooTampa's Manatee Critical Care Center.
"Keeping them together for the next stage of their rehabilitation journey will help them adjust to their new surroundings," Scott said.
The manatees were all very small when they were rescued, weighing between 44 and 62 pounds. They required bottle feeding and intensive care for months, but now they each weigh more than 350 pounds.
When the manatees each weigh 600 pounds, they will be released back into the wild.
Cincinnati Zoo's job will be to provide plenty of food, primarily lettuce and veterinary care until the manatees are able to be returned to Florida waters.
The Florida manatee population continually struggles with watercraft injuries, severe weather, red tide and more.
"We are proud to collaborate with ZooTampa and other MRP partners to help make a difference for manatees," Scott said. "The critical care facilities in Florida are at capacity, and by providing homes for some of the manatees that are ready for the next phase in their rehabilitation journeys we help to open up space for more rescued animals."
