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TAMPA, Fla. — It’s been clear for months that 2021 would be the deadliest year on record for Florida’s manatees. When the death count surpassed 1,000 in November, experts sounded the alarm, fearing the toll the winter months ahead would continue to inflict.
Last year was a bad year for Florida manatees who saw a record number of deaths along the east and west coast.
State and federal wildlife officials undertook the unusual step of offering food to manatees last month after an unprecedented number of deaths last year, most from starvation. But so far, the manatees have been ignoring the offerings of lettuce.
It’s a make-or-break time for Florida’s iconic state marine mammal after 1,101 manatees died across the state in 2021.
Officials from a joint effort to help feed Florida's manatees said they have not yet recorded any of them eating the lettuce at the feeding stations.