Three orphaned manatees have found a new home at the Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden where they are currently adjusting to their new surroundings after their arrival on Sunday, 1 October 2023.
Nolia, Amethyst, and Waffles will receive rehabilitation at the zoo’s Manatee Springs habitat until they reach their target weight of at least 600 pounds, then will be released back into their native waters in Florida. On September 29, Cincinnati Zoo transported three manatees, which it had been rehabilitating for the past year, back to Florida.
Accompanying them were five manatees that had been under the care of the Columbus Zoo. Five young manatees, including two destined for Columbus and Nolia, Amethyst, and Waffles for Cincinnati, boarded the return flight to Ohio. The Florida manatee, which was downgraded from "endangered" to "threatened" in 2018, continues to face various natural and human-induced threats to its survival.
These include exposure to red tide, cold stress, and disease, all of which pose serious risks to manatees. Human-caused threats, such as boat strikes, accidents involving flood gates or locks, and entanglement in or ingestion of fishing gear, further endanger these gentle giants.