Manatees

Manatees

Introduction Many years ago, sailors told stories about mermaids, or sea sirens. They were beautiful creatures that were half woman and half fish. They sang to sailors to lure them onto dangerous rocks. There, the sailors would get shipwrecked.

When Columbus sailed to the New World, he saw manatees and thought they were mermaids. Nowadays, it is hard to believe anyone could confuse a manatee with a mermaid. Manatees have a gentle, sweet appearance, but they are not nearly as beautiful as mermaids. In fact, they're kind of funny looking.

Description Manatees are marine mammals. They belong to a group of mammals called Sirenia. This name comes from the old belief that manatees were sea sirens. They are sometimes called sea cows because, like cows, they graze on plants for many hours at a time. And like cows, they eat huge amounts of plant food.

Manatees are shaped like very chubby dolphins. They have a paddle-shaped tail that helps them move through the water. Large front flippers help them to steer. They have pudgy, wrinkIed faces that look a little like the face of a Chinese Shar-pei dog or a walrus. They have heavy, solid bones. Scientists believe their heavy bones keep them from floating too high in the water.

Manatees are not close relatives of whales, dolphins, or walruses, even though all of these are marine mammals. They are also not closely related to cows. The closest well-known living relative of the manatee is the elephant.