Crystal River, Florida: Captain Stacy Dunn took this sweet photo of a mother manatee nursing her calf near the end of May. "I just took this photo about an hour ago out behind my home on King's Bay," said Stacy. "During this oil spill crisis, it does one good to see something so peaceful and delicate."

Crystal River, Florida: Don Berk took these shots of a manatee mother and calf in an off-shoot of the canal that goes from King Springs to Three Sisters Springs. "The calves are prevalent here, and we witnessed a bunch of moms nursing," said Don. "It almost seemed like they were taking turns so we could watch each one. The manatees obviously value this protected zone as they swim into it quickly and then just relax and slow down and feed or nurse or just nap. I love shooting photos of the animals here as it is quite breathtaking." (Shot with a Canon Digital Rebel EOS and using a 75-300mm zoom lens.)

Palm Beach County, Florida: Jimmy Sweat sent a photo of manatees mating on his beach last year, across from the Boynton Inlet. Jimmy's wife, Holly Patten, was keeping watch and chasing away spectators. "This was really an interesting phenomenon and a positive for the future!" says Jimmy.

Orange City, Florida: Manatee supporter Jo Ellen Ryan from California took this photo of manatees huddled at the warm spring waters of Blue Spring State Park during Florida's very cold spell in early February.

Orange City, Florida: "We spent three nights in a cabin at Blue Spring State Park," says Jo Ellen Ryan. "We saw people look at this beautiful mosaic manatee several times. One day, a young boy walked up and spoke to it, and I took this picture."

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