Opposition to Manatee Downlisting
On March 30, 2017, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) issued its final rule to downgrade the status of the West Indian manatee from endangered to threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act. The rule affects both the Florida and Antillean subspecies and was pursued despite strong scientific and legal evidence that shows the downlisting of manatees is not warranted at this time. The FWS decision leaves manatees and their habitat exposed to attacks and could ultimately preclude the species’ recovery.
Save the Manatee Club believes the FWS decision failed to adequately consider data from 2010 to 2016, during which time manatees suffered from unprecedented mortality events linked to habitat pollution, dependence on artificial warm water sources, and record deaths from watercraft strikes.
FWS decided to prematurely downlist manatees without a proven viable plan for reducing record-high watercraft-related manatee deaths and without establishing a long-term plan for the anticipated loss of artificial winter warm water habitat on which more than 60% of the Florida manatee population depends.
- See our press release on this issue.
Date: March 30, 2017 - Read: Scientists and the Public Support Keeping Manatees’ Endangered Status
Date: July 7, 2016 - Read a summary outlining reasons why the FWS proposal to downlist manatees is premature.
- Read Save the Manatee Club’s official comments to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service from Dr. Katie Tripp, Save the Manatee Club Director of Science and Conservation.
Date: April 7, 2016 - Read comments to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on behalf of Save the Manatee Club from Eric R. Glitzenstein of Meyer Glitzenstein & Eubanks LLP, focusing on legal deficiencies in the proposal reclassification.
Date: April 4, 2016 - Read comments to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service from Anne Harvey, Staff Attorney for Save the Manatee Club.
Date: April 7, 2016 - Read a petition to Dan Ashe, former Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, submitted by Save the Manatee Club on behalf of 11,368 people who signed it. You can also read opinion editorials and additional letters on this topic below and sign up for our action alerts. We’ll be engaging our Action Team members as updates are available and your support is needed. Please give to our Legal Action Fund to help us fight to keep manatee protections strong!
Learn More:
2021
Let’s Save Florida’s Manatees
By Bob Graham, former Florida Governor, U.S. Senator, and Save the Manatee Club Co-Founder
Date: April 8, 2021
A State of Emergency for Manatees in the Indian River Lagoon and Beyond
Read an op-ed by Patrick Rose, Executive Director of Save the Manatee Club
Date: February 16, 2021
Algae Blooms, Seagrass Loss, and Manatee Deaths
2021
2019
It’s A Perilous Time For Florida Manatees. Yet, Trump Is Destroying The Endangered Species Act.
Read an op-ed in the Tampa Bay Times by Bob Graham, former Florida Governor and U.S. Senator and Co-Founder of Save the Manatee Club
Date: August 13, 2019
2016
Threats to Manatees and Habitat on the Rise: Help Protect Their Future
Read an op-ed by Patrick Rose, Executive Director of Save the Manatee Club
Date: March 30, 2016
Senator Nelson Voices Strong Opposition to the Proposal to Downgrade the West Indian Manatee
Thank you to U.S. Senator Bill Nelson, who has sent a letter to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
“I do not believe there is sufficient scientific support for a reclassification at this time,” said Senator Nelson. He asks the Service to “…maintain the endangered listing for this iconic species to ensure its permanent legacy in Florida.”
Date: April 7, 2016
Congressional Delegation Expresses Concern With FWS Proposal to Downlist Manatees
Thank you to the members of the U.S. Congressional Delegation who have expressed concern with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s proposal to downlist manatees. “The Florida manatee continues to face significant threats to its survival such as boating strikes, habitat loss, pollution and the anticipated loss of artificial warm water sources,” the letter states. “The proposal may also fail to reflect the most recent scientific information available.”
Date: April 7, 2016
Buchanan Files Formal Protest to Manatee “Survival” Plan
Thank you to Rep. Vern Buchanan, who has sent a formal objection letter, asking the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to withdraw their plan to downlist manatees. “I write in strong opposition to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s proposal to downlist the West Indian manatee under the Endangered Species Act from endangered to threatened status,” said Rep. Buchanan. “This decision is based on outdated information and underestimates the effect that a downlisting will have on protections that have helped limit manatee deaths.”
Date: April 4, 2016
Florida Organizations and Businesses Write In Opposition to Proposed Rule
Thank you to these organizations and businesses, who have written in opposition to the FWS proposal to downlist manatees. “One of the five factors the FWS is supposed to evaluate is ‘the present or threatened destruction, modification, or curtailment of its habitat or range,’ the letter states. “Manatees rely on healthy aquatic ecosystems, but in Florida, critical water issues stem from upland land use, runoff, and water consumption for human use. Florida faces serious and increasing threats to the quality and quantity of its water supply, which the State of Florida has been unwilling or unable to resolve. Without serious efforts to address threats to Florida’s waterways, manatee habitat will continue to become increasingly fragmented and degraded.”
Date: April 7, 2016
Threats to Manatees and Habitat on the Rise: Help Protect Their Future
Read an op-ed by Patrick Rose, Executive Director of Save the Manatee Club
Date: March 30, 2016
No Time to Celebrate: Manatees’ Future Far from Certain
Read our op-ed from Dr. Katie Tripp, Save the Manatee Club Director of Science and Conservation,
on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s recent proposal to downlist all West Indian manatees
from endangered to threatened.
Date: January 12, 2016
2015
Higher Manatee Count Simply Means We Have More to Protect
Read an op-ed from Dr. Katie Tripp, Save the Manatee Club Director of Science and Conservation
Date: March 23, 2015
2014
Senator Nelson to USFWS: Maintain Classification As Endangered
Read a letter from U.S. Senator Bill Nelson, urging the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to
“…maintain the Florida Manatee’s classification as ‘endangered,’
Date: September 4, 2014
On Manatees, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Should Consider
Cautionary Tale of the Indian River Lagoon
Read an opinion-editorial piece by Nathaniel P. Reed,
former Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Fish and Wildlife and Parks
and current Vice Chairman of the Everglades Foundation
Date: August 28, 2014
Manatee Review Should Consider ALL the Facts
Read an op-ed from Dr. Katie Tripp, Save the Manatee Club Director of Science and Conservation
Date: July 17, 2014
U.S. Rep. Castor to FWS: Protect the Florida Manatee
Read the press release and signed letter from Representative Castor and members
of the Florida congressional delegation.
Date: July 10, 2014
After Record Losses, What’s in Store for Manatees in 2014?
Read an op-ed from Dr. Katie Tripp, Save the Manatee Club Director of Science and Conservation
Date: February 11, 2014
2013
The Record You Don’t Want To Break
Read an op-ed from Dr. Katie Tripp, Save the Manatee Club Director of Science and Conservation
Date: October 31, 2013
Record Deaths, Mysterious Mortality — Ongoing Threats Make Manatee Recovery Tenuous
Read an op-ed from Dr. Katie Tripp, Save the Manatee Club Director of Science and Conservation
Date: May 9, 2013