The Official Newsletter of Save the Manatee Club - June 2020

Aug 26, 2026

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Official newsletter of Save the Manatee Club for June 2020 (Volume 39, Issue #2), published four times a year. Features a letter from Executive Director Patrick M. Rose discussing enduring support, the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, and ways to stay involved. Includes updates from Blue Spring State Park on the 2019-2020 winter manatee season, including sighting counts, adoptee departures, and recorded outcomes, supported by related photos and acknowledgements.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLifestyle

FormatPDF

Pages16

Reading Time25 min

AccessFree to download

A Letter From Our Executive Director

Manatee Season Wraps Up At Blue Spring

Blue Spring State Park Adoption Update

Blue Spring Adoptee Sightings for the 2019-2020 Winter Season

The Official Newsletter of Save the Manatee Club ® 500 N. Maitland Ave., Ste. 210 Maitland, FL 32751 Artwork by Nancy Blauers June, Volume 39 Issue \#2 of 2020 Published four times a year in March, June, September, and November. A Letter From Our Executive Director By Patrick M. Rose, CPM, Aquatic Biologist Dear Friends of the Manatee, I want you to know how much I appreciate your enduring support for imperiled manatees. I feel a sense of humility for your continuing trust in me and our dedicated team of manatee advocates who strive every day so that manatees can have a better future. I developed a personal passion for manatees and all things in and under the water as a 4th grader in the Midwestern United States. Since that time, I have been blessed to live out my passion as an aquatic biologist over a long and rewarding career, helping to protect manatees and the aquatic ecosystems upon which they depend for their survival. I was especially blessed to have been chosen by Florida Governor Bob Graham and Jimmy Buffett in 1981 to join them as the manatee scientific advisor for the newly-formed Save the Manatee Committee (the precursor to the Save the Manatee Club) . We have faced and overcome many challenges during these nearly 40 years, but I must admit that the challenges we all must face, each and everyday, in coping with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic far exceed anything we have had to overcome before. Still, my more than 50 years of experience in working with so many selfless people willing to sacrifice for something greater than their individual best interest has better prepared me to meet the challenges of this new, and as yet unprecedented, set of circumstances threatening everything we hold dear. I know that many of you and our other friends in the manatee family are suffering through one day at a time. I am not asking for your financial support but only for your continued faith and trust that together we will endure and press forward in creating a better safer world for man and manatee alike. Above: During the BP Oil Spill of 2010, Pat flew many hours over the coasts of Florida, Alabama, and Louisiana searching for oil-sickened manatees and other marine life in need of rescue. Photo courtesy of Dean Dugger. With humility, Patrick M. Rose, CPM, Aquatic Biologist Executive Director Pat Rose (far right) comforts the critically injured manatee named Big Brother while participating at the manatee’s health assessment at Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park. Photo courtesy of Susan Lowe. Have you ever thought about becoming a Club volunteer? Or joining our Manatee Sighting Network? Or contacting decision makers? To find out more about all the ways you can help, [go to](go to savethemanatee.org/moreways)[ savethemanatee.org/moreways](go to savethemanatee.org/moreways). Thank you so much! You make a big difference in the lives of manatees! Manatee Season Wraps Up At Blue Spring Blue Spring State Park Adoption Update By Wayne Hartley, Manatee Specialist The manatee season ran from November 15th to March 12th. Our first good count was 249 manatees present, and the last good count was 28 on March 11th. The next day we had one sighting, and then they were gone. We had a record number of calves at 69. Another record was the sighting of 803 different manatees during the season. This will change as I digest the data I’ve accumulated this season, but not by much. Phyllis and Gator have both been in since the end of season. Gator secured a tree branch and took it back to the river with him. The adoptee departures this season began in December with our last sighting of Flash on the 26th. Merlin was next on January 9th. Our only other departure in January was Margarito on the 23rd. Rocket disappeared February 23rd. The next day Una and her calf were gone, but it was not Una’s decision. She and her calf were captured and taken to SeaWorld Orlando so monofilament line could be removed f

FAQs

What does the executive director ask supporters for during the COVID-19 pandemic?

He asks friends to maintain their faith and trust that the club will endure and press forward in creating a safer world for both man and manatee.

What were the main results of the Blue Spring winter manatee season counts?

The season ran from November 15 to March 12, with first good count of 249 manatees and last good count of 28 on March 11, then only one sighting the next day.

How does the newsletter present adoption-related information for Blue Spring?

It provides an adoption update describing adoptee departures and includes a chart listing Blue Spring adoptee sightings by individual manatees during the 2019-2020 winter season.

Aug 26, 2026

Upload by James