When Florida's waters cool down in the winter, its resident manatees huddle together for warmth—this year, in record numbers. On Jan. 21, Volusia County's Blue Spring State Park, which NPR dubs "one of the largest winter gathering sites for manatees" in the Sunshine State, witnessed a total of 932 of the marine creatures congregated, breaking the previous record of 736 just set on New Year's Day, per the Friends of Blue Spring State Park. The nonprofit Save the Manatee Club notes that Jan. 21 was one of the season's coldest mornings yet, with temperatures in the park's St. Johns River hovering just above 58 degrees.
Manatees prefer waters that are at least 68 degrees, on account of their sluggish metabolism and thin layer of fat. Blue Spring's waters are a comfy 72 degrees, which is why it's become a literal hot spot for the sea cows. WFLA notes that the creatures typically seek out warmer natural springs around Florida, and even waters around electrical power plants—Tampa Electric, for example, actually hosts a manatee viewing center.
Monica Ross, a manatee expert at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute, tells NPR that Florida's recent spate of back-to-back cold fronts has contributed to the higher-than-usual number of manatees showing up in the state park outside of Orange City. She notes that ample food in warm springs is another factor, as algae blooms elsewhere are stunting the growth of the seagrass that manatees devour.
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Pollution, habitat loss, and run-ins with boats are other threats they regularly face. Citing figures from the state's Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the US Fish and Wildlife Service, NPR notes "an unusually high number" of manatee deaths on Florida's east coast, with more than 1,000 perishing in 2021, mostly due to starvation. Estimates from the FWCC put the total number of manatees in Florida somewhere between 8,350 and 11,700, as of 2022. "The fact that [manatees] are choosing to be at Blue [Spring] shows how important of a site it is and what a manatee is really looking for, for survival," Ross says. (More uplifting news stories.)
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