Manatees: Alabama’s Gentle Giants and how YOU can protect them

Reviewed by: Cindy Hatcher

Reading time: 1 minute

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Up close look at a sweet manatee. (Dauphin Island Sea Lab Manatee Sighting Network)

Not long ago, when manatees were seen along Mobile Bay’s estuaries and coasts, scientists thought they were “accidental tourists” who lost their way.

Who could blame them? Between 1980 to 2006, experts estimated only about 200 sightings of manatees in Alabama. 

That began to change in 2007 when the Dauphin Island Sea Lab Manatee Sighting Network was established, the first program of its kind.

By training and involving citizen scientists throughout the region to identify and record manatee sightings, the number of manatee encounters jumped exponentially to 4,500 sightings between 2007 to 2025, according to the Network.

Manatees were not lost—they knew what they were doing.

We’ve been reporting on animals that are found only on Alabama’s coasts and bays that need our protection for survival. See how we learned to “share the beach” with sea turtles at this link.

For our second story in this three-part series, we’ll learn to protect manatees and how these gentle giants play a role in our delicate coastal ecosystem.

Check out our story: Manatees: Alabama’s Gentle Giants and how YOU can protect them

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Pat Byington
Pat Byington

Longtime conservationist. Former Executive Director at the Alabama Environmental Council and Wild South. Publisher of the Bama Environmental News for more than 18 years. Career highlights include playing an active role in the creation of Alabama's Forever Wild program, Little River Canyon National Preserve, Dugger Mountain Wilderness, preservation of special places throughout the East through the Wilderness Society and the strengthening (making more stringent) the state of Alabama's cancer risk and mercury standards.

Articles: 2753

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