1 00:00:01,500 --> 00:00:05,060 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Should Know, a production of iHeartRadio. 2 00:00:11,170 --> 00:00:14,150 Speaker 2: Hey, and welcome to the podcast. I'm Josh, and there's Chuck, 3 00:00:14,210 --> 00:00:17,369 Speaker 2: and Jerry's here too. And this is Stuff You Should Know, 4 00:00:17,810 --> 00:00:20,570 Speaker 2: the I can't believe we haven't done this one yet episode. 5 00:00:21,110 --> 00:00:23,590 Speaker 1: Yeah, can I tell you something that happened just now 6 00:00:23,630 --> 00:00:27,930 Speaker 1: while you were away? Yeah. So, Josh, as you do traditionally, 7 00:00:27,950 --> 00:00:30,820 Speaker 1: I hope this is not revealing too much. Between episodes, 8 00:00:30,860 --> 00:00:32,800 Speaker 1: you got up to go to the little podcaster's room. 9 00:00:33,479 --> 00:00:35,220 Speaker 2: I tinkled. Okay. 10 00:00:35,979 --> 00:00:39,200 Speaker 1: And I said, Jerry, we're doing an episode on manatees. 11 00:00:39,380 --> 00:00:42,490 Speaker 1: And she said, see puppies. And I said, see cows. 12 00:00:43,110 --> 00:00:44,310 Speaker 1: And she said, who are puppies? 13 00:00:45,830 --> 00:00:46,150 Speaker 2: What? 14 00:00:46,170 --> 00:00:47,030 Speaker 1: Yeah. 15 00:00:47,770 --> 00:00:49,089 Speaker 2: Jerry's brain is broke. 16 00:00:49,350 --> 00:00:52,070 Speaker 1: Well, I think she just was like, no, I call 17 00:00:52,090 --> 00:00:52,550 Speaker 1: them puppies. 18 00:00:53,080 --> 00:00:56,080 Speaker 2: I see. I get it now. I get it. She 19 00:00:56,120 --> 00:00:59,560 Speaker 2: was saying... I thought she was saying like, who are puppies? 20 00:00:59,640 --> 00:01:03,680 Speaker 2: Like a completely unrelated non sequitur. Like if sea cows 21 00:01:03,720 --> 00:01:07,220 Speaker 2: aren't puppies, then who are puppies? That's what I get 22 00:01:07,280 --> 00:01:08,420 Speaker 2: how she was saying it now. 23 00:01:08,800 --> 00:01:11,970 Speaker 1: Man, we're losing it here on our middle to old age. 24 00:01:12,310 --> 00:01:13,430 Speaker 2: We really are. 25 00:01:13,790 --> 00:01:14,569 Speaker 1: You're middle, I'm old. 26 00:01:15,550 --> 00:01:19,490 Speaker 2: No, we're both middle old. We're in our 50s, dude. 27 00:01:19,510 --> 00:01:21,009 Speaker 2: We're the same from here on out. 28 00:01:21,370 --> 00:01:22,090 Speaker 1: Oh, man. 29 00:01:22,130 --> 00:01:22,790 Speaker 2: Until death. 30 00:01:23,209 --> 00:01:25,070 Speaker 1: Thank God. You can't hold that 40s thing over me 31 00:01:25,110 --> 00:01:25,509 Speaker 1: any longer. 32 00:01:25,910 --> 00:01:28,209 Speaker 2: No, but it was fun while it lasted, for sure. 33 00:01:28,410 --> 00:01:30,770 Speaker 2: Although now I'm like, oh, I'm going through all the 34 00:01:30,810 --> 00:01:32,560 Speaker 2: same phases Chuck went through. 35 00:01:32,580 --> 00:01:34,300 Speaker 1: Right? 36 00:01:34,840 --> 00:01:36,440 Speaker 2: That I used to make fun of him for. Now 37 00:01:36,480 --> 00:01:39,679 Speaker 2: they've befallen me. So just yuck it up, buddy. 38 00:01:39,959 --> 00:01:42,780 Speaker 1: Yuck it up. You're going to start playing golf in 39 00:01:42,800 --> 00:01:47,940 Speaker 1: a few years. That's my prediction. People are already calling 40 00:01:47,980 --> 00:01:49,760 Speaker 1: for you. They're like, can we get Josh on the show? 41 00:01:49,780 --> 00:01:51,740 Speaker 1: Can he play golf once and just get him on 42 00:01:51,780 --> 00:01:54,530 Speaker 1: three-putt bogey. And I was like, I mean, I'll do 43 00:01:54,570 --> 00:01:56,110 Speaker 1: it if he'll do it, but I don't think you 44 00:01:56,130 --> 00:01:57,790 Speaker 1: could get Josh on a golf course. 45 00:01:58,490 --> 00:02:00,520 Speaker 2: It depends if there was no one else on the 46 00:02:00,560 --> 00:02:02,940 Speaker 2: golf course and it was just you, Adam, and me. 47 00:02:02,960 --> 00:02:03,700 Speaker 1: Yeah, that'd be fun. 48 00:02:03,840 --> 00:02:07,640 Speaker 2: I would probably try that, sure. But if you are 49 00:02:07,700 --> 00:02:11,540 Speaker 2: into manatees... I don't blame you one bit because they are, 50 00:02:12,139 --> 00:02:15,440 Speaker 2: if you look at them on paper, they are not 51 00:02:15,600 --> 00:02:20,700 Speaker 2: at all cute. They're horrifically ugly, but they're not in reality. 52 00:02:20,760 --> 00:02:23,180 Speaker 2: When you see a manatee, it all comes together in 53 00:02:23,240 --> 00:02:26,920 Speaker 2: just such a certain way that they're incredibly adorable. Even 54 00:02:26,960 --> 00:02:31,130 Speaker 2: the fully grown adults one. And then they are exactly 55 00:02:31,430 --> 00:02:35,329 Speaker 2: in personality and nature what they look like too, which 56 00:02:35,410 --> 00:02:37,620 Speaker 2: makes them even better in my opinion. Yeah. 57 00:02:37,900 --> 00:02:41,339 Speaker 1: Maybe the most huggable animal on planet earth. And there's 58 00:02:41,380 --> 00:02:44,040 Speaker 1: some huggable animals, but man, those manatees just give you 59 00:02:44,080 --> 00:02:46,480 Speaker 1: a look like, come over here, fella, and wrap your 60 00:02:46,530 --> 00:02:47,090 Speaker 1: arms around me. 61 00:02:47,590 --> 00:02:48,810 Speaker 2: Right. But don't do that. 62 00:02:49,470 --> 00:02:51,470 Speaker 1: No, don't. You don't want to touch a manatee. It's 63 00:02:51,490 --> 00:02:51,929 Speaker 1: not cool. 64 00:02:52,410 --> 00:02:54,710 Speaker 2: You know, here in Florida, there was a place that 65 00:02:55,410 --> 00:02:58,510 Speaker 2: was opening and they had released all these billboards and 66 00:02:58,550 --> 00:03:01,540 Speaker 2: everything saying, there's a giant picture of a sloth. And 67 00:03:01,580 --> 00:03:06,169 Speaker 2: it said, yes, you can hold them. And the The 68 00:03:06,290 --> 00:03:09,650 Speaker 2: people of Orlando just rose up and were like, that 69 00:03:09,730 --> 00:03:12,650 Speaker 2: is not going to happen. And I guess they lobbied 70 00:03:12,690 --> 00:03:15,070 Speaker 2: to get the authorities to go take those sloths away 71 00:03:15,130 --> 00:03:17,410 Speaker 2: from the people that were opening that sloth park. And 72 00:03:17,430 --> 00:03:20,730 Speaker 2: it ain't happening now. And I'll bet they wish they 73 00:03:20,790 --> 00:03:23,070 Speaker 2: hadn't put, yes, you can hold them on the billboard. 74 00:03:23,730 --> 00:03:24,570 Speaker 1: Yeah, probably so. 75 00:03:25,070 --> 00:03:26,160 Speaker 2: But I thought that was pretty cool. 76 00:03:26,470 --> 00:03:27,790 Speaker 1: No, I love it. They're doing the right thing. 77 00:03:28,680 --> 00:03:31,579 Speaker 2: So let's get back to manatees, Chuck. We're going to 78 00:03:31,700 --> 00:03:34,920 Speaker 2: start with the brass tacks, which is Cockney rhyming slang 79 00:03:34,960 --> 00:03:39,660 Speaker 2: for facts. And there's actually three species still around today. 80 00:03:40,160 --> 00:03:43,480 Speaker 2: There's the Amazonian manatee, the West African manatee, and the 81 00:03:43,520 --> 00:03:48,240 Speaker 2: West Indian manatee. And there's two subspecies of West Indian manatee. 82 00:03:48,880 --> 00:03:51,490 Speaker 2: And this has gotten pretty dry already. 83 00:03:52,590 --> 00:03:55,470 Speaker 1: Well, they belong to the animal order Cyrenia. And we'll 84 00:03:55,590 --> 00:03:57,690 Speaker 1: see why in a second, because that's pretty interesting, actually. 85 00:03:57,710 --> 00:04:00,150 Speaker 1: And it turns out that there were a lot of 86 00:04:00,650 --> 00:04:04,580 Speaker 1: former relatives that had gone extinct. like various kinds of 87 00:04:04,640 --> 00:04:07,160 Speaker 1: sea cows that are related to the manatee, or at 88 00:04:07,200 --> 00:04:10,200 Speaker 1: least led to the modern manatee. Sadly, a lot of 89 00:04:10,240 --> 00:04:14,870 Speaker 1: those were hunted into extinction. But these jokers have been 90 00:04:14,880 --> 00:04:19,850 Speaker 1: around for 58 million years. And get this, to me, 91 00:04:20,010 --> 00:04:23,089 Speaker 1: this may be the fact of the episode. They share 92 00:04:23,110 --> 00:04:28,680 Speaker 1: a very close common ancestor with elephants. And at a 93 00:04:28,710 --> 00:04:31,700 Speaker 1: certain point in time, when these elephants were hanging out 94 00:04:31,720 --> 00:04:34,460 Speaker 1: in the water, I guess one decided they liked the 95 00:04:34,500 --> 00:04:37,700 Speaker 1: water so much they stuck around and stuck around and 96 00:04:37,760 --> 00:04:41,460 Speaker 1: stuck around. And eventually those arms became flippers. That trunk 97 00:04:41,520 --> 00:04:44,779 Speaker 1: shrunk down into a cute little snout. The legs became 98 00:04:44,820 --> 00:04:48,180 Speaker 1: a tail. And that became the manatee. So you're looking 99 00:04:48,240 --> 00:04:50,760 Speaker 1: at sort of a weird water elephant. 100 00:04:50,779 --> 00:04:51,820 Speaker 2: Isn't that neat? 101 00:04:52,339 --> 00:04:52,940 Speaker 1: It's the best. 102 00:04:53,920 --> 00:04:56,810 Speaker 2: So they never became fully aquatic. They still breathe air. 103 00:04:56,870 --> 00:05:00,540 Speaker 2: They're mammals. So they still breathe air. Although they've definitely 104 00:05:00,580 --> 00:05:05,310 Speaker 2: adapted to life in the sea, essentially, because they can 105 00:05:05,370 --> 00:05:09,229 Speaker 2: exhale 90% of the air in their lungs on exhaling, right? 106 00:05:09,710 --> 00:05:11,529 Speaker 2: And then that means they can also fill it up 107 00:05:11,570 --> 00:05:14,010 Speaker 2: with another 90% of fresh air and they can hold 108 00:05:14,029 --> 00:05:16,630 Speaker 2: their breath for quite a while, but they still need 109 00:05:16,710 --> 00:05:19,089 Speaker 2: air to breathe. And they never really made it that 110 00:05:19,150 --> 00:05:21,710 Speaker 2: far away from land. They still kind of hug the 111 00:05:21,790 --> 00:05:25,610 Speaker 2: coastal areas. They're never very far. They're not like ocean 112 00:05:25,650 --> 00:05:29,450 Speaker 2: going normally. Although apparently once in a while a manatee 113 00:05:29,470 --> 00:05:32,600 Speaker 2: will be found like up in Rhode Island or Massachusetts 114 00:05:32,680 --> 00:05:35,200 Speaker 2: or something. And it's because they just kind of bumbled 115 00:05:35,240 --> 00:05:37,920 Speaker 2: their way along the rivers and estuaries all the way 116 00:05:38,020 --> 00:05:41,100 Speaker 2: up there. And they usually get airlifted back down to 117 00:05:41,160 --> 00:05:43,500 Speaker 2: Florida when they're found up there because they're not supposed 118 00:05:43,520 --> 00:05:44,580 Speaker 2: to be up quite that high. 119 00:05:44,860 --> 00:05:47,360 Speaker 1: Yeah. And when they get back, they go to their buddies, say, 120 00:05:47,680 --> 00:05:49,920 Speaker 1: you know what's nice? And they go, what? And they say, 121 00:05:50,640 --> 00:05:55,200 Speaker 1: New England. Right. And they say, tell us all about it. 122 00:05:56,120 --> 00:05:57,039 Speaker 2: And what do they say? 123 00:05:57,279 --> 00:05:59,099 Speaker 1: And they say, well, first of all, Rhode Island, don't 124 00:05:59,120 --> 00:05:59,680 Speaker 1: get me started. 125 00:06:01,180 --> 00:06:03,630 Speaker 2: They're like, but what about Delaware? Is Delaware any good? 126 00:06:03,650 --> 00:06:06,130 Speaker 2: And they're like, yeah, Delaware gets kind of a bad rap. 127 00:06:06,470 --> 00:06:07,370 Speaker 1: Delaware's not New England. 128 00:06:08,390 --> 00:06:10,970 Speaker 2: No? No. Do you know where Delaware is? 129 00:06:11,490 --> 00:06:13,159 Speaker 1: Where is it? Yeah. Where is it on the map? 130 00:06:13,170 --> 00:06:13,710 Speaker 2: It's in New England. 131 00:06:13,730 --> 00:06:19,099 Speaker 1: All right, let's just move on. Let's describe the manatee, 132 00:06:19,140 --> 00:06:21,920 Speaker 1: because like you said, they're sort of ugly cute. They 133 00:06:21,940 --> 00:06:26,440 Speaker 1: have grayish brown skin. It is very wrinkly and tough looking. 134 00:06:26,460 --> 00:06:29,940 Speaker 1: They got some little alfalfa sprout hairs here and there. 135 00:06:29,960 --> 00:06:34,860 Speaker 1: The big, long, tapered, round bodies tapering down to that 136 00:06:34,900 --> 00:06:38,640 Speaker 1: paddle-shaped tail. Those little flippers have three or four nails. 137 00:06:38,700 --> 00:06:41,170 Speaker 1: It's not even that specific. Some guys are like, I 138 00:06:41,190 --> 00:06:44,750 Speaker 1: wanted three. Some guys wanted four. And then they have 139 00:06:44,770 --> 00:06:49,589 Speaker 1: that little snout, which is whiskered, but has prehensile lips. 140 00:06:50,830 --> 00:06:53,680 Speaker 2: Yeah, let's talk about those. They're basically like two little hands. 141 00:06:54,470 --> 00:06:59,630 Speaker 2: that the manatee uses to basically grasp and pull seagrass, eelgrass, 142 00:06:59,810 --> 00:07:02,930 Speaker 2: out of the sandy bottom that it's growing in, right? 143 00:07:03,650 --> 00:07:06,690 Speaker 2: And that sounds an awful lot like the trunk of 144 00:07:06,730 --> 00:07:07,570 Speaker 2: an elephant, doesn't it? 145 00:07:07,950 --> 00:07:08,450 Speaker 1: It sure does. 146 00:07:09,590 --> 00:07:12,690 Speaker 2: They also, the tails that they evolve with their back 147 00:07:12,740 --> 00:07:16,920 Speaker 2: legs fused into, they're actually, as slow as they kind 148 00:07:16,960 --> 00:07:19,300 Speaker 2: of move along, I think they usually travel at about 149 00:07:19,380 --> 00:07:21,400 Speaker 2: three to six miles an hour on average. 150 00:07:21,420 --> 00:07:21,700 Speaker 1: Perfect. 151 00:07:22,280 --> 00:07:25,120 Speaker 2: But those tails are so powerful that if you give 152 00:07:25,160 --> 00:07:30,540 Speaker 2: them an unhealthy jolt, they will zoom off very quickly 153 00:07:31,640 --> 00:07:34,020 Speaker 2: at top speeds of 15 miles an hour. And they 154 00:07:34,060 --> 00:07:36,440 Speaker 2: can do a burst of 21 feet per second when 155 00:07:36,490 --> 00:07:38,710 Speaker 2: they first get away from you. Yeah. 156 00:07:38,830 --> 00:07:39,910 Speaker 1: And you know what they say after that? 157 00:07:40,450 --> 00:07:40,610 Speaker 2: What? 158 00:07:41,190 --> 00:07:41,930 Speaker 1: Man, that sucks. 159 00:07:42,710 --> 00:07:46,270 Speaker 2: I hate doing that. Yeah, I'll bet they do. 160 00:07:46,270 --> 00:07:46,960 Speaker 1: I hate spinning. They're like, oh. 161 00:07:47,750 --> 00:07:47,990 Speaker 2: Yeah. 162 00:07:48,590 --> 00:07:51,230 Speaker 1: Oh. Uh, those little flippers and, you know, we're going 163 00:07:51,250 --> 00:07:54,050 Speaker 1: to point along some stuff that we think is especially 164 00:07:54,090 --> 00:07:56,550 Speaker 1: cute along the way. And this is one of them. Uh, 165 00:07:56,650 --> 00:07:58,450 Speaker 1: I don't know if we will agree on the, to me, 166 00:07:58,510 --> 00:08:01,760 Speaker 1: the single kind of cutest thing. So we'll see. It's 167 00:08:01,800 --> 00:08:03,900 Speaker 1: always fun to see if those align. Uh, but those 168 00:08:03,920 --> 00:08:06,400 Speaker 1: little flippers, they're obviously kind of steering themselves or paddling 169 00:08:06,420 --> 00:08:08,870 Speaker 1: with that tail, but they also use that little flipper 170 00:08:08,930 --> 00:08:11,330 Speaker 1: to hold seagrass. They'll tuck it under their little flipper. 171 00:08:11,840 --> 00:08:13,820 Speaker 1: Because they're like, I might want a little snack along 172 00:08:13,840 --> 00:08:14,080 Speaker 1: the way. 173 00:08:14,100 --> 00:08:15,660 Speaker 2: Isn't that cute? 174 00:08:15,800 --> 00:08:16,230 Speaker 1: I love it. 175 00:08:16,500 --> 00:08:18,440 Speaker 2: They might as well be carrying like their little pencil 176 00:08:18,480 --> 00:08:20,580 Speaker 2: case on the way to school or something. 177 00:08:20,620 --> 00:08:21,040 Speaker 1: Totally. 178 00:08:22,160 --> 00:08:26,580 Speaker 2: And so Michelle Konstantinovsky from How Stuff Works was one 179 00:08:26,610 --> 00:08:29,830 Speaker 2: of our sources for this episode. And she is a 180 00:08:30,010 --> 00:08:34,790 Speaker 2: huge manatee fan. And she found, I think, a mention 181 00:08:34,890 --> 00:08:40,390 Speaker 2: from Smithsonian that referred to manatees as roly-poly herbivores. Mm-hmm. 182 00:08:40,950 --> 00:08:44,929 Speaker 2: I also saw floaty potatoes. But they both kind of 183 00:08:44,960 --> 00:08:47,679 Speaker 2: get across. These things are big lumps that just like 184 00:08:47,700 --> 00:08:51,360 Speaker 2: to go along and eat stuff. And big is definitely 185 00:08:51,380 --> 00:08:55,400 Speaker 2: like a good way to describe them. I think when 186 00:08:55,420 --> 00:08:59,770 Speaker 2: they're born, they're something like four feet long and 60 187 00:08:59,770 --> 00:09:02,410 Speaker 2: to 70 pounds when they're born. 188 00:09:02,429 --> 00:09:04,929 Speaker 1: That's a puppy, as Jerry would say. 189 00:09:04,950 --> 00:09:06,270 Speaker 2: That's a big baby. 190 00:09:06,550 --> 00:09:10,580 Speaker 1: I think they're actually called calves. Fully grown, about 8 191 00:09:10,580 --> 00:09:13,140 Speaker 1: to 1,200 pounds on average and about 10 feet long. 192 00:09:13,179 --> 00:09:15,980 Speaker 1: But the biggest daddies can be up to 13 feet 193 00:09:16,020 --> 00:09:17,780 Speaker 1: long and weigh 3,500 pounds. 194 00:09:18,140 --> 00:09:18,319 Speaker 2: Right. 195 00:09:18,540 --> 00:09:23,020 Speaker 1: Which is huge. They live in that brackish water. They 196 00:09:23,040 --> 00:09:25,400 Speaker 1: also like some fresh water, as we'll see, because there's 197 00:09:25,420 --> 00:09:28,720 Speaker 1: some other cute stuff coming your way in terms of that. And, like, 198 00:09:28,880 --> 00:09:32,160 Speaker 1: you know, they'll go into rivers sometimes, like kind of 199 00:09:32,179 --> 00:09:36,110 Speaker 1: brackish rivers, coastal rivers. They love the stuff near the 200 00:09:36,150 --> 00:09:38,820 Speaker 1: shore because that's where all that delicious– sea grass and 201 00:09:38,900 --> 00:09:42,740 Speaker 1: eel grasses. And so they just feed along the coastlines 202 00:09:42,780 --> 00:09:45,950 Speaker 1: where that sea grass is. And they want the deep 203 00:09:45,990 --> 00:09:48,630 Speaker 1: water access, although, as you said, they don't hang out there. 204 00:09:48,670 --> 00:09:50,070 Speaker 1: But if they need to get out of Dodge, they 205 00:09:50,090 --> 00:09:51,929 Speaker 1: want to be able to go to deeper waters quickly. 206 00:09:52,429 --> 00:09:55,210 Speaker 2: Exactly right. So they know what's going on. They know 207 00:09:55,230 --> 00:09:58,070 Speaker 2: where to go. But for the most part, they don't 208 00:09:58,130 --> 00:10:01,900 Speaker 2: really have to evacuate an area very quickly, very often, 209 00:10:01,960 --> 00:10:05,840 Speaker 2: as we'll see. Just a little taste of what's to come. 210 00:10:06,420 --> 00:10:10,240 Speaker 2: They're also solitary. They're considered solitary animals, but they very 211 00:10:10,340 --> 00:10:16,280 Speaker 2: frequently congregate. to like basically graze together. They'll hang out. 212 00:10:16,520 --> 00:10:19,340 Speaker 2: And then when they move together, like say they're grazing 213 00:10:19,380 --> 00:10:21,660 Speaker 2: together and they're moving from one place to another, they 214 00:10:22,460 --> 00:10:25,100 Speaker 2: keep in a single file, which I find super cute, 215 00:10:25,620 --> 00:10:28,960 Speaker 2: but they don't have any territory and they're not territorial. 216 00:10:29,100 --> 00:10:32,220 Speaker 2: They just kind of go wherever the food is and 217 00:10:32,360 --> 00:10:37,100 Speaker 2: everybody loves them. The thing is, as big as they are, 218 00:10:37,420 --> 00:10:41,180 Speaker 2: they don't have blubber. You might think they're just like fat. No, 219 00:10:41,300 --> 00:10:45,469 Speaker 2: they're beefy hosses essentially is what they are. And that 220 00:10:45,530 --> 00:10:48,890 Speaker 2: means that they can't stay warm in very cold water. 221 00:10:49,230 --> 00:10:53,590 Speaker 2: So they have to find warm water in the winter months. Yeah. 222 00:10:53,710 --> 00:10:56,510 Speaker 1: Anything below 68 degrees, they can be in it for 223 00:10:56,550 --> 00:10:58,689 Speaker 1: a short time, but they're not into it at all. 224 00:11:00,110 --> 00:11:03,350 Speaker 1: So they kind of hang around the Gulf of Mexico 225 00:11:03,429 --> 00:11:06,990 Speaker 1: and Peninsular Florida. where it's nice and warm. They also 226 00:11:07,030 --> 00:11:10,260 Speaker 1: love those natural warm springs that you can find in Florida. 227 00:11:10,440 --> 00:11:12,680 Speaker 1: There's one that's very popular with the manatees called Blue 228 00:11:12,720 --> 00:11:16,660 Speaker 1: Spring State Park that has lovely water that stays about 229 00:11:16,660 --> 00:11:21,620 Speaker 1: 72 degrees into the winter. And so they will congregate 230 00:11:21,679 --> 00:11:25,790 Speaker 1: there and they're reviewing platforms and people will stand around 231 00:11:25,830 --> 00:11:28,390 Speaker 1: and gawk and talk about how cute they are. The 232 00:11:28,410 --> 00:11:31,940 Speaker 1: other interesting thing they'll do for warmth is where they're 233 00:11:32,000 --> 00:11:35,319 Speaker 1: generating power, like where the outfalls are for power plants, 234 00:11:35,380 --> 00:11:37,090 Speaker 1: the water is a little warmer there so they can 235 00:11:37,120 --> 00:11:37,970 Speaker 1: hang out there sometimes. 236 00:11:38,190 --> 00:11:40,830 Speaker 2: Yeah, I find that pretty cool too. I think the 237 00:11:41,070 --> 00:11:43,550 Speaker 2: manatees you're going to find in Florida. So remember the 238 00:11:43,770 --> 00:11:47,610 Speaker 2: Florida manatee is a subspecies of the West Indian manatee. 239 00:11:48,090 --> 00:11:50,660 Speaker 2: And that's basically who we're going to focus on. But 240 00:11:51,020 --> 00:11:54,900 Speaker 2: the Florida manatee itself, that subspecies is native to Florida 241 00:11:54,920 --> 00:11:58,099 Speaker 2: and they've been there for Probably around 12,000 years. I 242 00:11:58,440 --> 00:12:03,170 Speaker 2: think that they moved from the Caribbean to Florida about 243 00:12:03,170 --> 00:12:05,710 Speaker 2: 12,000 years ago after the last ice age is what 244 00:12:05,730 --> 00:12:07,730 Speaker 2: they figured from genetic testing. 245 00:12:08,350 --> 00:12:10,850 Speaker 1: Yeah, but they think they've been, you know, except for 246 00:12:10,890 --> 00:12:13,390 Speaker 1: the ice ages, have been around Florida for over a 247 00:12:13,429 --> 00:12:16,000 Speaker 1: million years total. Right. Yeah. Impressive. 248 00:12:16,640 --> 00:12:20,360 Speaker 2: The other subspecies of West Indian that is the close, 249 00:12:20,400 --> 00:12:23,240 Speaker 2: close relative, it may be even the same, but just 250 00:12:23,260 --> 00:12:26,220 Speaker 2: with a different range. as the Florida manatee is the 251 00:12:26,420 --> 00:12:29,420 Speaker 2: Antillean or Caribbean manatee, which I think we already mentioned. 252 00:12:30,100 --> 00:12:35,630 Speaker 2: They're found throughout the Caribbean and along the coast of 253 00:12:35,690 --> 00:12:42,839 Speaker 2: the Gulf of America. We found that, Chuck, didn't we, 254 00:12:43,080 --> 00:12:45,640 Speaker 2: on the Fish and Wildlife Service site. 255 00:12:46,280 --> 00:12:46,420 Speaker 1: Yeah. 256 00:12:46,840 --> 00:12:48,359 Speaker 2: It was the first time I've run across it in 257 00:12:48,400 --> 00:12:51,440 Speaker 2: the wild. But that's a U.S. government website. And they 258 00:12:51,480 --> 00:12:53,450 Speaker 2: referred to the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of 259 00:12:53,500 --> 00:12:55,370 Speaker 2: America with a totally straight face. 260 00:12:56,130 --> 00:12:58,929 Speaker 1: Yeah, they did. And I texted you and said, I'm 261 00:12:58,950 --> 00:13:01,610 Speaker 1: not going to tell you things I said, but we're 262 00:13:01,630 --> 00:13:03,810 Speaker 1: going to call it the Gulf of Mexico. So that's 263 00:13:03,850 --> 00:13:07,790 Speaker 1: where they hang out. They are distributed from like northern 264 00:13:07,809 --> 00:13:11,310 Speaker 1: Mexico all the way down to the northeastern coast of Brazil. 265 00:13:12,170 --> 00:13:16,370 Speaker 1: And I think you mentioned the Caribbean. And they get around. 266 00:13:16,410 --> 00:13:17,630 Speaker 1: Like you said, they go where the food is. So 267 00:13:17,670 --> 00:13:21,130 Speaker 1: they may travel not much sometimes. They may travel hundreds 268 00:13:21,170 --> 00:13:24,430 Speaker 1: of miles in a year if they need to get food. 269 00:13:25,050 --> 00:13:28,250 Speaker 2: Yeah. They find themselves in Rhode Island and say, oh, dear. Oh, my. 270 00:13:28,490 --> 00:13:28,670 Speaker 1: Yeah. 271 00:13:30,530 --> 00:13:32,719 Speaker 2: So you know that Christopher Columbus cat? 272 00:13:33,500 --> 00:13:34,900 Speaker 1: Uh-huh. 273 00:13:34,920 --> 00:13:39,059 Speaker 2: He is credited for documenting the first sighting of a 274 00:13:39,179 --> 00:13:43,050 Speaker 2: European of a manatee. But he was a dipstick and 275 00:13:43,170 --> 00:13:46,609 Speaker 2: he recorded them as seeing three mermaids. Did you know that? 276 00:13:46,929 --> 00:13:49,189 Speaker 1: Well, so is that what he was talking about? Like, 277 00:13:49,230 --> 00:13:51,190 Speaker 1: do we know that he was talking about manatees? 278 00:13:51,770 --> 00:13:53,750 Speaker 2: No, he was talking about mermaids and they're like, this 279 00:13:53,830 --> 00:13:54,650 Speaker 2: is a manatee. 280 00:13:55,070 --> 00:13:56,849 Speaker 1: Well, no, that's what I mean, though. But have we, 281 00:13:57,190 --> 00:13:58,929 Speaker 1: is it kind of verified that those were one in 282 00:13:58,980 --> 00:13:59,580 Speaker 1: the same to him? 283 00:14:00,270 --> 00:14:03,600 Speaker 2: That seems to be the general consensus is that that's 284 00:14:03,640 --> 00:14:05,439 Speaker 2: what he was talking about. All right. 285 00:14:05,559 --> 00:14:06,319 Speaker 1: I believe it, I guess. 286 00:14:07,080 --> 00:14:10,780 Speaker 2: Because he said that the mermaids were, quote, not half 287 00:14:10,860 --> 00:14:13,900 Speaker 2: as beautiful as they are painted. Well, yeah. 288 00:14:14,020 --> 00:14:16,420 Speaker 1: And, you know, when I mentioned earlier to put a 289 00:14:16,420 --> 00:14:21,180 Speaker 1: pin in the order that is Cyrenia, that's from the 290 00:14:21,240 --> 00:14:24,940 Speaker 1: Greek sirens and Greek mythology. And the sirens initially were 291 00:14:24,980 --> 00:14:28,340 Speaker 1: bird women, but then eventually were mermaids. Right. So I 292 00:14:28,380 --> 00:14:32,120 Speaker 1: guess that's where dumb, dumb Christopher Columbus thought they were mermaids. 293 00:14:32,800 --> 00:14:36,000 Speaker 2: So did you know that siren or some version of 294 00:14:36,110 --> 00:14:40,610 Speaker 2: it means mermaid in a bunch of different languages that 295 00:14:40,710 --> 00:14:45,970 Speaker 2: aren't at all related, like Tagalog and Catalan and Croatian 296 00:14:46,730 --> 00:14:49,770 Speaker 2: all basically use some version of siren as mermaid? 297 00:14:49,790 --> 00:14:51,570 Speaker 1: Yeah, I didn't know that until this. 298 00:14:52,310 --> 00:14:54,890 Speaker 2: Me either, Chuck. You want to take a break? Yeah. 299 00:14:55,450 --> 00:14:57,110 Speaker 2: What were you going to say about that fact? 300 00:14:57,750 --> 00:14:59,630 Speaker 1: That was today years old. Okay. 301 00:15:00,340 --> 00:15:01,320 Speaker 2: Now do you want to take a break? 302 00:15:01,710 --> 00:15:02,770 Speaker 1: Sure. No, let's keep going. 303 00:15:02,790 --> 00:15:03,490 Speaker 2: Oh, okay. 304 00:15:04,010 --> 00:15:07,370 Speaker 1: No, I'm kidding. We'll take that break and we'll gaze 305 00:15:07,410 --> 00:15:09,370 Speaker 1: at pictures of manatees and be back in a minute. 306 00:15:22,340 --> 00:15:27,040 Speaker 3: Learning stuff from Joshua and Charles. 307 00:15:27,920 --> 00:15:30,210 Speaker 1: Stuff you should know. 308 00:15:31,690 --> 00:15:31,970 Speaker 2: All right. 309 00:15:32,010 --> 00:15:35,550 Speaker 1: We're back, everybody. Josh mentioned that they are herbivores. Well, 310 00:15:35,590 --> 00:15:38,030 Speaker 1: we mentioned they ate seagrass, but they are strictly herbivores. 311 00:15:38,950 --> 00:15:43,400 Speaker 1: They love that sweet, sweet seagrass. And, you know, in 312 00:15:43,410 --> 00:15:45,360 Speaker 1: the House of Works article, they point out that there's 313 00:15:45,400 --> 00:15:48,100 Speaker 1: probably some, you know, little bits of krill and other 314 00:15:48,300 --> 00:15:50,900 Speaker 1: shrimpy things that might get in their mouth. But they're 315 00:15:50,920 --> 00:15:53,560 Speaker 1: probably like, I don't want that in my mouth. I 316 00:15:53,580 --> 00:15:56,560 Speaker 1: just want that sweet seagrass. And I want to spend 317 00:15:56,620 --> 00:15:59,740 Speaker 1: eight hours of my day eating that stuff. maybe up 318 00:15:59,760 --> 00:16:02,230 Speaker 1: to 10% of my body weight, because that's how I roll. 319 00:16:03,130 --> 00:16:05,070 Speaker 2: Yeah, and the reason they have to eat so much 320 00:16:05,130 --> 00:16:10,370 Speaker 2: is because they very, very slowly metabolize. They're like naturally 321 00:16:10,450 --> 00:16:12,270 Speaker 2: on GLP-1 or something like that. 322 00:16:13,010 --> 00:16:13,930 Speaker 1: Exactly. 323 00:16:13,960 --> 00:16:16,960 Speaker 2: That actually, there's a purpose for that. It's an adaptation 324 00:16:16,980 --> 00:16:20,740 Speaker 2: that helps the manatee from overheating in very warm waters. 325 00:16:20,860 --> 00:16:25,420 Speaker 2: But unfortunately, natural selection giveth and natural selection taketh away. 326 00:16:26,080 --> 00:16:30,400 Speaker 2: because that means that they can't easily burn enough energy 327 00:16:30,740 --> 00:16:33,500 Speaker 2: to warm themselves up in cold water, which is why 328 00:16:33,560 --> 00:16:35,980 Speaker 2: they have to go seek out things like power plant 329 00:16:36,120 --> 00:16:39,120 Speaker 2: outfalls in the winter months so they don't freeze to death. 330 00:16:39,820 --> 00:16:43,510 Speaker 1: Yeah, totally. Here's another kind of fun fact. They, you know, 331 00:16:43,550 --> 00:16:45,070 Speaker 1: when you're eating all that seagrass, you're going to be 332 00:16:45,110 --> 00:16:46,770 Speaker 1: getting sand in there too, and that's going to wear 333 00:16:46,790 --> 00:16:50,370 Speaker 1: their teeth down. And so one adaptation that they have 334 00:16:50,590 --> 00:16:54,590 Speaker 1: is they have a Tooth replacement, like we do. Those 335 00:16:54,670 --> 00:16:58,490 Speaker 1: molars are continually replaced throughout their life. They just grind 336 00:16:58,510 --> 00:17:00,850 Speaker 1: down from that sand and eventually will fall out. And 337 00:17:00,870 --> 00:17:03,150 Speaker 1: there's another molar emerging right behind it. 338 00:17:03,840 --> 00:17:05,920 Speaker 2: Yeah. Do you know what other animal does that? 339 00:17:06,820 --> 00:17:07,159 Speaker 1: Humans. 340 00:17:07,920 --> 00:17:08,400 Speaker 2: Elephants. 341 00:17:09,660 --> 00:17:09,980 Speaker 1: Oh, okay. 342 00:17:10,660 --> 00:17:13,000 Speaker 2: We don't replace new teeth. I mean, we do with 343 00:17:13,060 --> 00:17:14,660 Speaker 2: like crowns and stuff like that. 344 00:17:15,440 --> 00:17:17,520 Speaker 1: Well, I mean, we lose our baby teeth and get 345 00:17:17,560 --> 00:17:18,340 Speaker 1: our molars in. 346 00:17:18,660 --> 00:17:19,440 Speaker 2: Oh, sure. 347 00:17:19,460 --> 00:17:19,560 Speaker 1: Yeah. 348 00:17:19,640 --> 00:17:22,390 Speaker 2: I gotcha. I gotcha. I got another fact about their 349 00:17:22,410 --> 00:17:23,129 Speaker 2: teeth too, Chuck. 350 00:17:23,470 --> 00:17:24,850 Speaker 1: Wait, do you still have all your baby teeth? 351 00:17:25,690 --> 00:17:25,990 Speaker 2: Yes. 352 00:17:27,460 --> 00:17:28,260 Speaker 1: What's your fact? 353 00:17:29,980 --> 00:17:33,120 Speaker 2: They are incapable of using their teeth to attack. They're 354 00:17:33,140 --> 00:17:36,740 Speaker 2: set too far back in their mouth. So the best 355 00:17:36,800 --> 00:17:38,440 Speaker 2: a manatee could do is gum you. 356 00:17:39,000 --> 00:17:39,240 Speaker 1: Yeah. 357 00:17:39,680 --> 00:17:43,080 Speaker 2: And they wouldn't even do that. They essentially seem to 358 00:17:43,140 --> 00:17:47,440 Speaker 2: be incapable of aggressive behavior. They just don't do it. 359 00:17:48,060 --> 00:17:51,439 Speaker 2: You know, like with dolphins, dolphins can get kind of 360 00:17:51,460 --> 00:17:57,220 Speaker 2: assaulty sexually sometimes. They can get very aggressive. No one 361 00:17:57,260 --> 00:18:00,220 Speaker 2: has ever seen or documented a manatee getting aggressive in 362 00:18:00,420 --> 00:18:02,899 Speaker 2: any way, shape or form, not just with people, but 363 00:18:02,940 --> 00:18:05,280 Speaker 2: with other animals, too. It's pretty cool. 364 00:18:06,060 --> 00:18:08,520 Speaker 1: Yeah, that's super cool. And, you know, earlier I mentioned 365 00:18:08,540 --> 00:18:11,180 Speaker 1: there's a little cute thing that they do with the freshwater, 366 00:18:11,240 --> 00:18:16,649 Speaker 1: their desire for freshwater. They will find that freshwater wherever 367 00:18:16,670 --> 00:18:18,430 Speaker 1: it is. Sometimes it's at the mouth of a river 368 00:18:18,470 --> 00:18:22,310 Speaker 1: they'll hang out. Sometimes they will lie on their back 369 00:18:22,810 --> 00:18:25,350 Speaker 1: when it rains and just open their big maw and 370 00:18:25,390 --> 00:18:28,970 Speaker 1: drink that way. And sometimes, and imagine you're a very 371 00:18:29,060 --> 00:18:32,480 Speaker 1: lucky boat cleaner, if you're hanging out cleaning your boat 372 00:18:32,540 --> 00:18:35,359 Speaker 1: at a dock, And you throw that hose down on 373 00:18:35,840 --> 00:18:38,550 Speaker 1: the dock, you should turn it off. But if you're 374 00:18:38,570 --> 00:18:40,670 Speaker 1: just letting it run, you might find a manatee down 375 00:18:40,690 --> 00:18:42,490 Speaker 1: there just lapping it up. Yes. 376 00:18:42,790 --> 00:18:45,410 Speaker 2: So Yumi and I were very, very lucky for years. 377 00:18:45,470 --> 00:18:48,790 Speaker 2: We lived on the Indian River Lagoon, and there was 378 00:18:48,869 --> 00:18:52,110 Speaker 2: a dock that belonged to the condo. And you could 379 00:18:52,150 --> 00:18:54,889 Speaker 2: go down there and watch manatees drinking hose water a 380 00:18:55,450 --> 00:18:56,290 Speaker 2: lot of the time. 381 00:18:56,310 --> 00:18:57,970 Speaker 1: Wow. That's so cool, man. 382 00:18:58,310 --> 00:19:00,609 Speaker 2: It was very cool to see, for sure. 383 00:19:00,770 --> 00:19:02,230 Speaker 1: What a thing to do every evening. 384 00:19:02,690 --> 00:19:06,619 Speaker 2: Yeah, it's super cute, as you can imagine, right? We 385 00:19:06,660 --> 00:19:08,840 Speaker 2: also learned that manatee poop floats. 386 00:19:10,619 --> 00:19:11,080 Speaker 1: Oh, okay. 387 00:19:12,810 --> 00:19:17,270 Speaker 2: And then speaking of floating too, so manatees would conceivably 388 00:19:17,330 --> 00:19:20,170 Speaker 2: be too buoyant, but they have very dense bones that 389 00:19:20,210 --> 00:19:23,449 Speaker 2: keep them from just floating all the time. But they 390 00:19:23,490 --> 00:19:25,169 Speaker 2: do need to come up for breaths and then go 391 00:19:25,210 --> 00:19:27,990 Speaker 2: back down. And they actually use their lungs for that, 392 00:19:28,080 --> 00:19:28,520 Speaker 2: I believe. 393 00:19:29,100 --> 00:19:32,020 Speaker 1: Yeah, this was the one. This is what I think 394 00:19:32,060 --> 00:19:35,780 Speaker 1: the cutest visual there is, is when manatees are sleeping, 395 00:19:36,540 --> 00:19:39,359 Speaker 1: they're breathing and they're just bobbing up and down in 396 00:19:39,400 --> 00:19:42,290 Speaker 1: the water. while they're sleeping because their lungs are filling 397 00:19:42,369 --> 00:19:43,330 Speaker 1: up and then expelling air. 398 00:19:43,350 --> 00:19:44,840 Speaker 2: Isn't that cute? 399 00:19:45,340 --> 00:19:46,770 Speaker 1: Oh, my God. Can't take it. 400 00:19:48,390 --> 00:19:50,890 Speaker 2: So now we're going to turn the page for a moment. 401 00:19:52,250 --> 00:19:52,850 Speaker 1: Not so cute. 402 00:19:53,450 --> 00:19:56,390 Speaker 2: There is a thing about manatees that you may not know. 403 00:19:56,410 --> 00:19:59,250 Speaker 2: A lot of people don't know. And it can be 404 00:19:59,290 --> 00:20:03,290 Speaker 2: really disturbing to witness. And that is the mating process 405 00:20:03,330 --> 00:20:09,879 Speaker 2: of manatees. Because even though manatees are considered solitary animals... 406 00:20:10,090 --> 00:20:14,690 Speaker 2: When they mate, they form what are called mating herds, 407 00:20:15,030 --> 00:20:20,370 Speaker 2: and it is a mating free-for-all that happens. Yeah. 408 00:20:20,470 --> 00:20:23,929 Speaker 1: I mean, this article describes them as indiscriminate breeders, and 409 00:20:23,950 --> 00:20:26,290 Speaker 1: that is a nice way to say what's happening here. 410 00:20:27,510 --> 00:20:31,139 Speaker 1: They are obviously not monogamous. They don't even pair up 411 00:20:31,180 --> 00:20:35,040 Speaker 1: to mate. There is a single female manatee that gets 412 00:20:35,119 --> 00:20:39,800 Speaker 1: in heat, and then, like, up to 12 male manatees 413 00:20:40,060 --> 00:20:43,409 Speaker 1: that are all following closely behind. Like, come on, come on, 414 00:20:43,570 --> 00:20:46,310 Speaker 1: come on. You like me? You like me? And it 415 00:20:46,369 --> 00:20:53,770 Speaker 1: turns into just a big sex for all, basically, in 416 00:20:53,810 --> 00:20:57,230 Speaker 1: shallow waters where people can stand around and like call 417 00:20:57,250 --> 00:21:00,070 Speaker 1: the cops because they think something's wrong. Like that literally happens. 418 00:21:00,609 --> 00:21:05,359 Speaker 2: Yeah. In 2023, the cops, the sheriff's office from Clearwater, St. Pete, 419 00:21:05,540 --> 00:21:09,280 Speaker 2: Pinellas County, They had to post something asking people to 420 00:21:09,320 --> 00:21:12,320 Speaker 2: stop calling them to report manatees in distress, that the 421 00:21:12,340 --> 00:21:15,080 Speaker 2: manatees were actually mating and that's what they were supposed 422 00:21:15,100 --> 00:21:22,899 Speaker 2: to be doing. But yeah, it's very disturbing to see. 423 00:21:22,980 --> 00:21:25,700 Speaker 2: It's really, you can't believe what you're seeing if you 424 00:21:25,859 --> 00:21:29,340 Speaker 2: see manatees, you know, act the way manatees act, you know, 425 00:21:29,380 --> 00:21:31,820 Speaker 2: and then you kind of realize like, oh my God, 426 00:21:31,840 --> 00:21:33,600 Speaker 2: they're really freaky when they mate. 427 00:21:34,240 --> 00:21:36,220 Speaker 1: Did you and Yumi see this stuff at your dock? 428 00:21:37,200 --> 00:21:39,240 Speaker 2: We went to another dock. There was an even better 429 00:21:39,300 --> 00:21:41,710 Speaker 2: place that we could drive to. And it was a 430 00:21:41,750 --> 00:21:43,790 Speaker 2: great place to see manatees. And one of the times 431 00:21:43,869 --> 00:21:46,930 Speaker 2: we went, we witnessed a mating herd. And like they 432 00:21:46,970 --> 00:21:49,670 Speaker 2: were just rolling and splashing all around the water. It 433 00:21:49,710 --> 00:21:53,230 Speaker 2: was like, you know, those balls of snakes, like when 434 00:21:53,290 --> 00:21:56,050 Speaker 2: snakes mate. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. It was like that, 435 00:21:56,070 --> 00:21:59,660 Speaker 2: but with manatees, basically. Oh, man. It was something else. 436 00:21:59,880 --> 00:22:02,199 Speaker 1: I guess if you don't know and you're used to 437 00:22:02,240 --> 00:22:04,960 Speaker 1: them just gently floating around, you would definitely be like 438 00:22:05,119 --> 00:22:06,830 Speaker 1: something is. wrong here. 439 00:22:06,850 --> 00:22:11,770 Speaker 2: Man. Oh, man. So that was it, though. That's their 440 00:22:11,830 --> 00:22:14,460 Speaker 2: only vice is the mating ritual. After that, they go 441 00:22:14,520 --> 00:22:17,420 Speaker 2: right back to being super cute and adorable again, right? 442 00:22:17,760 --> 00:22:18,420 Speaker 1: Hey, good for them. 443 00:22:19,660 --> 00:22:21,360 Speaker 2: Yeah. More power to them, right? 444 00:22:21,760 --> 00:22:23,340 Speaker 1: That's how it's done in Manatee World. 445 00:22:24,780 --> 00:22:27,619 Speaker 2: What else is done in Manatee World is a very loving, 446 00:22:27,700 --> 00:22:34,030 Speaker 2: nurturing mother-calf relationship, which is adorable. Like, if you're like, Manatees, whatever. 447 00:22:34,090 --> 00:22:36,860 Speaker 2: You guys still haven't won me over yet. Go look 448 00:22:36,890 --> 00:22:41,220 Speaker 2: up videos of mother manatees interacting with their baby calves, 449 00:22:41,560 --> 00:22:44,060 Speaker 2: and that will get you no matter who you are. 450 00:22:44,660 --> 00:22:48,399 Speaker 1: Like hugging and kissing their little babies. They gestate for 451 00:22:48,420 --> 00:22:51,859 Speaker 1: about 12 to 14 months. Mamas do. Almost always a 452 00:22:51,880 --> 00:22:54,540 Speaker 1: single calf, but occasionally in rare cases there have been twins. 453 00:22:55,520 --> 00:22:57,640 Speaker 1: And this can happen any time of year, although they 454 00:22:57,800 --> 00:23:00,879 Speaker 1: seem to give birth more in the spring and summer. 455 00:23:02,100 --> 00:23:04,320 Speaker 1: And they like to go to a quiet little place 456 00:23:04,340 --> 00:23:06,820 Speaker 1: to give birth. I know we mentioned about four feet 457 00:23:06,859 --> 00:23:10,140 Speaker 1: long and about 60 to 70 pounds for a calf. 458 00:23:11,200 --> 00:23:14,940 Speaker 1: And they can be born apparently either head or tail first. 459 00:23:14,980 --> 00:23:17,220 Speaker 1: We don't have a lot of like direct documentation, but 460 00:23:17,760 --> 00:23:20,879 Speaker 1: they have seen a few born in, I guess, captivity. 461 00:23:21,600 --> 00:23:23,880 Speaker 1: And they do know that the newborn calf can swim 462 00:23:23,900 --> 00:23:27,350 Speaker 1: to the surface on its own right away and also 463 00:23:27,410 --> 00:23:30,910 Speaker 1: vocalize pretty soon after birth as well. And like clearly 464 00:23:30,970 --> 00:23:32,510 Speaker 1: like communicating with mom. 465 00:23:32,830 --> 00:23:36,930 Speaker 2: Yeah, the little baby calf bandedies. have a squeak that 466 00:23:36,950 --> 00:23:39,510 Speaker 2: they use to pester their mom until she lets them nurse. 467 00:23:40,650 --> 00:23:43,419 Speaker 2: And they start nursing like within a few hours after birth. 468 00:23:44,040 --> 00:23:47,640 Speaker 2: And they nurse underwater. The manatee mom's teats are right 469 00:23:47,680 --> 00:23:51,500 Speaker 2: behind her flippers. And she just hangs around and lets 470 00:23:51,920 --> 00:23:55,070 Speaker 2: the baby nurse. And I think they start eating plants 471 00:23:55,130 --> 00:23:57,679 Speaker 2: a few weeks later. And one of the things that 472 00:23:57,740 --> 00:24:01,610 Speaker 2: gets me is that the manatee calf will stay with 473 00:24:01,660 --> 00:24:04,530 Speaker 2: their mom for potentially two years. 474 00:24:04,550 --> 00:24:05,230 Speaker 1: Yeah. 475 00:24:05,290 --> 00:24:08,410 Speaker 2: But they can find and eat food on their own 476 00:24:08,570 --> 00:24:11,250 Speaker 2: by the end of year one. They just stick around 477 00:24:11,330 --> 00:24:14,430 Speaker 2: and are raised and nurtured for another year after that. 478 00:24:14,450 --> 00:24:15,350 Speaker 2: Isn't that adorable? 479 00:24:15,810 --> 00:24:19,050 Speaker 1: It's just the best. Earlier, too, you mentioned that they 480 00:24:19,090 --> 00:24:22,100 Speaker 1: swim in single file lines. That is true in all 481 00:24:22,140 --> 00:24:26,200 Speaker 1: cases except little baby because baby sticks next to mama. 482 00:24:26,970 --> 00:24:30,369 Speaker 1: and swims parallel right behind her little flipper. And they 483 00:24:30,410 --> 00:24:32,610 Speaker 1: think that this is, you know, so they can communicate 484 00:24:32,650 --> 00:24:33,270 Speaker 1: more effectively. 485 00:24:33,910 --> 00:24:35,869 Speaker 2: Or the baby's like, that's where the teat is. And 486 00:24:35,890 --> 00:24:38,390 Speaker 2: I like to keep it in close proximity, right? Yeah. 487 00:24:38,510 --> 00:24:39,250 Speaker 1: I got to see that thing. 488 00:24:39,990 --> 00:24:43,730 Speaker 2: So I said that manatees do not behave aggressively. Even 489 00:24:43,790 --> 00:24:47,510 Speaker 2: if you approach a manatee and her calf, she's not 490 00:24:47,570 --> 00:24:50,830 Speaker 2: going to come at you. What she'll do at first 491 00:24:50,950 --> 00:24:54,389 Speaker 2: is to swim between you and the calf, right? Like I'm, 492 00:24:55,140 --> 00:24:57,590 Speaker 2: trying to send you a signal here, like please back off. 493 00:24:57,750 --> 00:24:58,530 Speaker 1: Very nice message. 494 00:24:58,590 --> 00:25:01,189 Speaker 2: And if you keep coming, especially if you like are 495 00:25:01,230 --> 00:25:03,250 Speaker 2: hunchbacked and you have claws and are just kind of 496 00:25:03,290 --> 00:25:07,530 Speaker 2: coming at them like that, she'll squeak to the manatee 497 00:25:07,790 --> 00:25:10,790 Speaker 2: and they will both just take off very quickly away 498 00:25:10,869 --> 00:25:13,620 Speaker 2: from you. That's the most that they do when they're threatened. 499 00:25:13,900 --> 00:25:16,180 Speaker 2: They don't attack at all. Yeah. 500 00:25:16,300 --> 00:25:17,960 Speaker 1: It's just now occurring to me that these are the 501 00:25:18,380 --> 00:25:21,159 Speaker 1: most Canadian sea mammals that exist. 502 00:25:21,180 --> 00:25:26,359 Speaker 2: That's right. They may even be drifting into like Swede territory. 503 00:25:27,100 --> 00:25:32,600 Speaker 1: Maybe, or maybe Sconnies. Because, buddy, I just went to 504 00:25:32,640 --> 00:25:35,960 Speaker 1: the Falcons game in Green Bay at the legendary Lambeau Field. 505 00:25:36,260 --> 00:25:36,619 Speaker 3: Oh, yeah. 506 00:25:36,640 --> 00:25:38,810 Speaker 1: And I know we did our show in Madison. This 507 00:25:38,830 --> 00:25:40,010 Speaker 1: is like a bucket list trip for me. 508 00:25:40,410 --> 00:25:41,030 Speaker 2: Oh, cool. 509 00:25:41,830 --> 00:25:45,830 Speaker 1: It was almost like it was faked for like the 510 00:25:45,869 --> 00:25:49,920 Speaker 1: Truman Show. I've never... been around a kinder, more hospitable, 511 00:25:50,240 --> 00:25:52,220 Speaker 1: and I'm from the South. I'm used to Southern hospitality. 512 00:25:52,540 --> 00:25:55,820 Speaker 1: This puts Southern hospitality to shame how kind and sweet 513 00:25:55,920 --> 00:25:56,480 Speaker 1: everybody was. 514 00:25:56,800 --> 00:25:57,560 Speaker 2: That's pretty cool. 515 00:25:57,780 --> 00:25:58,840 Speaker 1: It was off the charts. 516 00:25:59,260 --> 00:26:02,260 Speaker 2: I remember in our Gein episode, we found that he 517 00:26:02,340 --> 00:26:04,040 Speaker 2: used to be like, I'm really sorry about this when 518 00:26:04,100 --> 00:26:08,620 Speaker 2: he was murdering somebody or stealing their corpse from the grave. Wisconsin. 519 00:26:08,780 --> 00:26:10,359 Speaker 1: Why are you going to do that? 520 00:26:10,560 --> 00:26:11,520 Speaker 2: That's great. Who won? 521 00:26:12,960 --> 00:26:15,440 Speaker 1: Well, the Falcons won. The Falcons were terrible early in 522 00:26:15,480 --> 00:26:17,810 Speaker 1: their first two games and I was just Like, hey, 523 00:26:17,910 --> 00:26:18,869 Speaker 1: I don't care. I'm going to go and have a 524 00:26:18,890 --> 00:26:21,619 Speaker 1: good time. And I felt really bad for the Packers 525 00:26:21,630 --> 00:26:26,160 Speaker 1: fans because the Falcons whipped them 35-13 or 14 maybe. 526 00:26:27,000 --> 00:26:28,800 Speaker 2: That is pretty bad for an NFL game, huh? 527 00:26:29,480 --> 00:26:33,120 Speaker 1: Yeah. And again, they were just so nice. I kind 528 00:26:33,140 --> 00:26:35,280 Speaker 1: of wanted the Packers to win while I was there. 529 00:26:35,460 --> 00:26:35,800 Speaker 2: Wow. 530 00:26:35,920 --> 00:26:39,659 Speaker 1: It was their first home game. And a guy literally 531 00:26:39,720 --> 00:26:43,150 Speaker 1: on the plane, their version of talking smack was this guy, 532 00:26:43,190 --> 00:26:45,830 Speaker 1: this old feller said, oh, I just hope nobody gets hurt. 533 00:26:46,840 --> 00:26:49,780 Speaker 2: I was like, where am I? That's amazing. 534 00:26:49,980 --> 00:26:51,480 Speaker 1: Yeah. So anyway, those are the manatees. 535 00:26:52,060 --> 00:26:55,180 Speaker 2: The Packers fans are the manatees of the NFL? 536 00:26:55,640 --> 00:26:55,980 Speaker 1: For sure. 537 00:26:56,940 --> 00:26:59,250 Speaker 2: You know who wouldn't have felt bad for the Packers 538 00:26:59,369 --> 00:27:03,129 Speaker 2: and would have been happy that they lost? Steelers fans. 539 00:27:04,410 --> 00:27:08,030 Speaker 1: Yeah. Well, anyone in their division. Bears fans for sure. 540 00:27:09,170 --> 00:27:13,429 Speaker 2: So, wow, that just really got... I basically stepped in 541 00:27:13,470 --> 00:27:14,830 Speaker 2: something I couldn't finish. 542 00:27:15,490 --> 00:27:18,090 Speaker 1: Just wipe it off your shoe. Wipe the NFL off 543 00:27:18,109 --> 00:27:18,930 Speaker 1: your shoe. You'll be fine. 544 00:27:20,070 --> 00:27:25,310 Speaker 2: So we should probably regroup and regather ourselves and take 545 00:27:25,350 --> 00:27:27,670 Speaker 2: a break and come back and shake off the NFL 546 00:27:27,690 --> 00:27:30,480 Speaker 2: stuff or get it off of my shoe, like you said. Yeah. 547 00:27:30,560 --> 00:27:32,840 Speaker 1: And everybody hang tight because we're going to talk when 548 00:27:32,859 --> 00:27:35,800 Speaker 1: we come back about the personality of the manatee. And 549 00:27:35,840 --> 00:27:37,840 Speaker 1: if you thought they were nice before, just wait. 550 00:27:50,840 --> 00:27:56,340 Speaker 3: Learning stuff from Joshua and Charles. 551 00:27:56,420 --> 00:28:01,900 Speaker 2: Stuff you should know. All right, Chuck, we promised talk 552 00:28:01,940 --> 00:28:04,640 Speaker 2: about manatee personalities, and I think we've kind of gotten 553 00:28:04,660 --> 00:28:08,070 Speaker 2: across that they're pretty mellow. They're very sweet and kind 554 00:28:08,130 --> 00:28:11,490 Speaker 2: and gentle. And yes, I'm anthropomorphizing. You're gonna have to 555 00:28:11,530 --> 00:28:15,430 Speaker 2: deal with that. I'm sorry. Yeah. They have no natural predators. 556 00:28:16,480 --> 00:28:20,369 Speaker 2: They've been endemic, native to Florida for a million years, sorry, 557 00:28:20,440 --> 00:28:24,210 Speaker 2: for at least 12,000 years, like the current manatee population there. 558 00:28:24,750 --> 00:28:28,770 Speaker 2: So they're not an invasive species. They're not new. And 559 00:28:28,830 --> 00:28:32,149 Speaker 2: they're not apex predators. And so for a species to 560 00:28:32,290 --> 00:28:37,429 Speaker 2: not have any natural predator under those circumstances is very, 561 00:28:37,510 --> 00:28:40,260 Speaker 2: very rare. I couldn't find another example of it, to 562 00:28:40,300 --> 00:28:43,820 Speaker 2: be honest. They get along with everybody. Everybody in their 563 00:28:43,840 --> 00:28:46,830 Speaker 2: habitat and ecosystem loves the manatee. Yeah. 564 00:28:47,130 --> 00:28:50,070 Speaker 1: They will, in Florida, swim side by side with alligators 565 00:28:50,970 --> 00:28:52,670 Speaker 1: and they have the right of way. If there's an 566 00:28:52,750 --> 00:28:55,370 Speaker 1: alligator in the way, they will just bump the alligator 567 00:28:55,390 --> 00:28:58,370 Speaker 1: and the alligator will be like, sure, buddy, you go 568 00:28:58,430 --> 00:29:01,870 Speaker 1: right on ahead. Because I think the general idea down 569 00:29:01,890 --> 00:29:05,340 Speaker 1: there is they've all got together without the manatees and 570 00:29:05,380 --> 00:29:09,040 Speaker 1: had a meeting and said, we're not going to eat them, right? 571 00:29:09,440 --> 00:29:11,940 Speaker 1: And everyone said, no, no, no, of course not. What 572 00:29:11,960 --> 00:29:12,500 Speaker 1: are we, animals? 573 00:29:12,780 --> 00:29:18,330 Speaker 2: Right. Very nice. I just imagined all the animals at 574 00:29:18,370 --> 00:29:21,470 Speaker 2: that meeting wearing gaucho hats with those little fabric balls 575 00:29:21,520 --> 00:29:22,320 Speaker 2: hanging around the brim. 576 00:29:23,140 --> 00:29:26,100 Speaker 1: I'm surprised that Disney has not done a manatee thing yet. 577 00:29:26,580 --> 00:29:29,260 Speaker 2: I am too now that you mention it. Yeah. Gosh. 578 00:29:29,720 --> 00:29:30,380 Speaker 1: Get on it, Disney. 579 00:29:31,320 --> 00:29:34,830 Speaker 2: So you said that manatees will spend like eight hours 580 00:29:35,230 --> 00:29:38,050 Speaker 2: eating a day. That actually leaves them with a decent 581 00:29:38,070 --> 00:29:39,970 Speaker 2: amount of free time and they just kind of hang 582 00:29:40,110 --> 00:29:42,620 Speaker 2: out sometimes with other manatees. They just kind of lay 583 00:29:42,670 --> 00:29:47,420 Speaker 2: around kind of floaty. They'll sleep a lot, but like they're, 584 00:29:47,660 --> 00:29:49,880 Speaker 2: they live the life that you would think a manatee 585 00:29:49,920 --> 00:29:52,820 Speaker 2: would live just looking at them. Like they feel every, 586 00:29:53,000 --> 00:29:56,480 Speaker 2: they fulfill all of your manatee fantasies. When you look 587 00:29:56,520 --> 00:29:58,420 Speaker 2: into them, it all checks out. 588 00:29:59,140 --> 00:30:02,380 Speaker 1: Yeah, I think Manatee Fantasies is definitely a 70s album title. 589 00:30:03,540 --> 00:30:05,020 Speaker 2: That's yacht rock through and through. 590 00:30:05,440 --> 00:30:08,950 Speaker 1: Yeah, for sure. But because they have no predators, they're 591 00:30:09,030 --> 00:30:10,969 Speaker 1: super curious because they're like, nothing's going to eat me, 592 00:30:11,030 --> 00:30:14,170 Speaker 1: so let's check everything out. And so they'll swim up 593 00:30:14,210 --> 00:30:17,250 Speaker 1: to your kayak. They'll swim up to your small boat. 594 00:30:17,970 --> 00:30:20,630 Speaker 1: They'll swim up to you if you're swimming along sometimes 595 00:30:20,710 --> 00:30:21,450 Speaker 1: or scuba diving. 596 00:30:21,890 --> 00:30:23,930 Speaker 2: In Florida, Manatee swims up to you. 597 00:30:25,620 --> 00:30:29,530 Speaker 1: Here's the deal, though. Federal guidelines now say... If you're 598 00:30:29,570 --> 00:30:32,790 Speaker 1: diving and snorkeling down there, if a manatee comes up 599 00:30:32,830 --> 00:30:36,150 Speaker 1: to you and you don't approach it, you can touch 600 00:30:36,210 --> 00:30:39,190 Speaker 1: it with an open hand if you want, which is 601 00:30:39,430 --> 00:30:43,770 Speaker 1: not something that any endangered or even threatened species is allowed. 602 00:30:44,330 --> 00:30:47,670 Speaker 1: And there are definitely a lot of conservationists and marine 603 00:30:47,690 --> 00:30:52,290 Speaker 1: biologists that are like, no, don't tell people that. Just 604 00:30:52,310 --> 00:30:55,050 Speaker 1: don't touch the manatees. Don't do it. Yeah. 605 00:30:56,900 --> 00:30:59,100 Speaker 2: There's a lot of reasons why, but the big one 606 00:30:59,160 --> 00:31:02,600 Speaker 2: is because they can very quickly become habituated to people, 607 00:31:03,300 --> 00:31:05,860 Speaker 2: very comfortable around you. If you feed them or they 608 00:31:05,880 --> 00:31:09,140 Speaker 2: get used to people feeding them, they're going to become 609 00:31:09,340 --> 00:31:13,690 Speaker 2: unnaturally habituated. And I've seen that any level of habituation 610 00:31:13,750 --> 00:31:18,070 Speaker 2: is considered unnatural in that. So manatees that aren't used 611 00:31:18,110 --> 00:31:21,120 Speaker 2: to people, if they see people on a beach that 612 00:31:21,130 --> 00:31:24,020 Speaker 2: they're near, they'll take off. They get spooked, right? So 613 00:31:24,960 --> 00:31:28,140 Speaker 2: a manatee interacting with a person is not what manatees 614 00:31:28,260 --> 00:31:32,960 Speaker 2: normally do. They're just naturally curious, and they don't have predators, 615 00:31:33,000 --> 00:31:36,660 Speaker 2: so they haven't developed a sense of fear that keeps 616 00:31:36,720 --> 00:31:41,260 Speaker 2: other animals at bay. And you as the human have 617 00:31:41,280 --> 00:31:45,300 Speaker 2: to be the bigger person here and just– Keep clear. 618 00:31:45,540 --> 00:31:48,110 Speaker 2: As much as you want to, like, hug that manatee, 619 00:31:48,660 --> 00:31:52,150 Speaker 2: that manatee would probably let you. Do not do that. 620 00:31:52,230 --> 00:31:54,770 Speaker 2: It's also dangerous. Like, the manatee could accidentally kill you 621 00:31:54,810 --> 00:32:02,500 Speaker 2: with this 1,300-pound girth, right? Or 3,500-pound girth, 13-foot-long body. 622 00:32:03,780 --> 00:32:05,700 Speaker 2: So it's just you don't want to do that. You 623 00:32:05,720 --> 00:32:08,300 Speaker 2: can also pass diseases to the manatee and kill them. 624 00:32:08,760 --> 00:32:11,880 Speaker 2: So don't. Just be like an upstanding human and look 625 00:32:11,900 --> 00:32:14,720 Speaker 2: at them, you know, nearby, but don't go touch them. 626 00:32:15,300 --> 00:32:20,540 Speaker 1: Yeah, I totally agree. Another sort of controversy in 2017. 627 00:32:20,540 --> 00:32:23,440 Speaker 1: Good news is they were populations were showing a pretty 628 00:32:23,480 --> 00:32:27,420 Speaker 1: good increase and like a steady one. And so they 629 00:32:27,940 --> 00:32:31,870 Speaker 1: downgraded them from endangered to threatened. But this is, you know, 630 00:32:31,950 --> 00:32:33,930 Speaker 1: the Save the Manatee Club who we're going to talk about. 631 00:32:33,950 --> 00:32:35,350 Speaker 1: I mean, they're kind of the go to if you 632 00:32:35,390 --> 00:32:37,690 Speaker 1: want to support manatees is Save the Manatee Club. 633 00:32:37,710 --> 00:32:38,030 Speaker 2: Yeah. 634 00:32:38,280 --> 00:32:40,280 Speaker 1: But they came out and they were like, this is, quote, 635 00:32:40,900 --> 00:32:44,560 Speaker 1: flagrantly inexcusable. They're like, just don't do it. Like, we're 636 00:32:44,600 --> 00:32:46,860 Speaker 1: not there yet. People get the wrong idea. And all 637 00:32:46,900 --> 00:32:50,440 Speaker 1: of a sudden, the interests are for humans. And then 638 00:32:50,520 --> 00:32:52,580 Speaker 1: the voters will keep thinking about it as much. Like, 639 00:32:52,620 --> 00:32:55,600 Speaker 1: just keep them on the endangered list, please. 640 00:32:56,320 --> 00:33:01,580 Speaker 2: Also, it puts development interests, humans, like trying to make 641 00:33:01,640 --> 00:33:06,500 Speaker 2: money developing areas that directly affect the habitats of manatees. 642 00:33:07,090 --> 00:33:11,390 Speaker 2: they're like legally now they come well before the manatees 643 00:33:11,550 --> 00:33:15,210 Speaker 2: rights or considerations, right? So it was probably a pretty 644 00:33:15,250 --> 00:33:20,540 Speaker 2: bad move back in 2017. And the reason it became 645 00:33:20,620 --> 00:33:22,560 Speaker 2: even more clear it was a bad move was that 646 00:33:22,620 --> 00:33:28,300 Speaker 2: in 2021, there was what the Fish and Wildlife called 647 00:33:28,340 --> 00:33:32,320 Speaker 2: an unusual mortality event where 1,255 manatees died of starvation 648 00:33:35,810 --> 00:33:41,280 Speaker 2: along the East Coast in just one section of Florida. 649 00:33:41,360 --> 00:33:44,100 Speaker 2: And that made up probably maybe an eighth of the 650 00:33:44,180 --> 00:33:49,020 Speaker 2: entire population of Florida manatees. And they still weren't moved 651 00:33:49,080 --> 00:33:51,680 Speaker 2: back to the endangered list. They were kept on the 652 00:33:51,720 --> 00:33:53,770 Speaker 2: threatened list, which was just stupid. 653 00:33:54,440 --> 00:34:00,170 Speaker 1: Yeah, that's a brutal number to die so quickly. It's very, 654 00:34:00,190 --> 00:34:03,710 Speaker 1: very sad to hear about this happened because they were 655 00:34:05,110 --> 00:34:08,029 Speaker 1: making up for food loss. And the reason there's food 656 00:34:08,070 --> 00:34:11,989 Speaker 1: loss is because humans and the activities of humans are 657 00:34:12,030 --> 00:34:15,350 Speaker 1: what's killing manatees. I think they could live up to 658 00:34:15,350 --> 00:34:18,890 Speaker 1: 60 years in the wild, but it looks like they 659 00:34:19,030 --> 00:34:24,229 Speaker 1: average about 10 years because of people. One way people 660 00:34:24,250 --> 00:34:27,710 Speaker 1: kill them is with their boats, like striking a manatee, 661 00:34:27,830 --> 00:34:29,770 Speaker 1: either with the front of your boat can be blunt 662 00:34:29,810 --> 00:34:32,950 Speaker 1: force trauma or cutting them up with your propeller. It's 663 00:34:32,989 --> 00:34:35,680 Speaker 1: a common way that manatees die. And then the 1,255, 664 00:34:35,680 --> 00:34:38,700 Speaker 1: like I said, were making up for food loss and 665 00:34:38,760 --> 00:34:43,600 Speaker 1: eating toxic algae, which killed them because their seagrass is 666 00:34:43,660 --> 00:34:46,500 Speaker 1: dying because of fertilizer runoff. 667 00:34:48,530 --> 00:34:52,489 Speaker 2: Yeah. So there's a lot of agriculture and a lot 668 00:34:52,510 --> 00:34:55,030 Speaker 2: of lawn care that goes on in the interior of Florida. 669 00:34:55,580 --> 00:34:59,239 Speaker 2: And Florida is essentially like a ridge, very, very flat ridge, 670 00:34:59,300 --> 00:35:02,670 Speaker 2: but the water runs from the middle of Florida to 671 00:35:02,690 --> 00:35:06,810 Speaker 2: the coasts, right? And it carries a lot of fertilizer runoff, 672 00:35:06,830 --> 00:35:09,520 Speaker 2: a lot of nitrogen. We've talked about algae blooms before. 673 00:35:09,540 --> 00:35:14,300 Speaker 2: I think probably largely in our Everglades episode. That happens 674 00:35:14,440 --> 00:35:17,700 Speaker 2: where manatees hang out and eat too. And when there's 675 00:35:17,739 --> 00:35:21,430 Speaker 2: an algae bloom, it sucks up all of the oxygen 676 00:35:21,510 --> 00:35:24,410 Speaker 2: from the water and kills off all of the plant life. 677 00:35:24,810 --> 00:35:26,770 Speaker 2: Or it sucks up all the carbon dioxide, one of 678 00:35:26,790 --> 00:35:29,549 Speaker 2: the two. and kills off a lot of the plant life. 679 00:35:29,910 --> 00:35:33,110 Speaker 2: And then it also turns to muck, which makes the 680 00:35:33,170 --> 00:35:36,609 Speaker 2: water murkier than it should be, which keeps sunlight from 681 00:35:36,670 --> 00:35:39,510 Speaker 2: reaching the remaining plants and kills off even more plants. 682 00:35:40,150 --> 00:35:42,670 Speaker 2: And so the algae blooms alone have had a huge, 683 00:35:43,050 --> 00:35:48,670 Speaker 2: huge impact on manatee habitats in the last, like, several decades, 684 00:35:48,730 --> 00:35:51,610 Speaker 2: last few decades. It's happened very, very quick, essentially. 685 00:35:52,510 --> 00:35:55,009 Speaker 1: Yeah, and, you know, you said you guys lived on 686 00:35:55,030 --> 00:35:56,060 Speaker 1: the Indian River, is that right? 687 00:35:56,440 --> 00:35:57,500 Speaker 2: Yeah, the lagoon. 688 00:35:58,210 --> 00:36:01,150 Speaker 1: Well, I mean, you should take this part, even though 689 00:36:01,170 --> 00:36:03,360 Speaker 1: you were just talking, because this is about the Indian 690 00:36:03,500 --> 00:36:05,400 Speaker 1: River Lagoon, and you live there, so you should tell 691 00:36:05,420 --> 00:36:05,820 Speaker 1: that story. 692 00:36:06,380 --> 00:36:08,520 Speaker 2: So what I was just talking about with the algae blooms, 693 00:36:08,560 --> 00:36:12,480 Speaker 2: the Indian River Lagoon is a major manatee habitat. It's very, 694 00:36:12,500 --> 00:36:14,700 Speaker 2: very long. I can't remember how long it is, but 695 00:36:14,739 --> 00:36:18,780 Speaker 2: it's an inland brackish coastal waterway. There's a little spit 696 00:36:18,860 --> 00:36:21,740 Speaker 2: of land between it and the Atlantic Ocean, and then 697 00:36:21,780 --> 00:36:24,710 Speaker 2: the Florida mainland starts on the other side of the lagoon, right? 698 00:36:26,050 --> 00:36:31,290 Speaker 2: And Just the stuff that flows into it is mind boggling. 699 00:36:31,469 --> 00:36:35,000 Speaker 2: Like there's like treated sewage gets put into it, but 700 00:36:35,020 --> 00:36:40,270 Speaker 2: a lot of these towns sewage systems can get disrupted 701 00:36:40,330 --> 00:36:43,570 Speaker 2: or whatever. And so untreated sewage leaks into it very frequently. 702 00:36:44,030 --> 00:36:47,190 Speaker 2: The space industry, Cape Canaveral is on the Indian River Lagoon. 703 00:36:47,730 --> 00:36:50,629 Speaker 2: So all that jet fuel and God knows what else 704 00:36:50,890 --> 00:36:53,620 Speaker 2: is in the Indian River too. And then all of 705 00:36:53,700 --> 00:36:58,240 Speaker 2: the algae blooms that happen. Every year, the Indian River 706 00:36:58,500 --> 00:37:03,600 Speaker 2: turns reliably into like this brown stinking mess. It's a problem, right? 707 00:37:03,960 --> 00:37:06,970 Speaker 2: And just aesthetically, it's a problem in and of itself. 708 00:37:07,370 --> 00:37:09,590 Speaker 2: But the impact it's had on the manatees has been huge. 709 00:37:10,410 --> 00:37:16,089 Speaker 2: One thing I saw was that 90% of the seagrass 710 00:37:16,350 --> 00:37:19,190 Speaker 2: in the Indian River Lagoon has been lost in just 711 00:37:19,230 --> 00:37:25,140 Speaker 2: like the last 15 to 20 years. And that's one 712 00:37:25,160 --> 00:37:28,580 Speaker 2: of the places where that unusual mortality event happened in 2021, 713 00:37:28,580 --> 00:37:34,239 Speaker 2: where 1,255 manatees starved to death. And what's even more heartbreaking, 714 00:37:34,400 --> 00:37:36,219 Speaker 2: it's never been like this when I saw it, Chuck, 715 00:37:36,660 --> 00:37:39,549 Speaker 2: but as recently as the sixties, it was just like 716 00:37:39,590 --> 00:37:41,709 Speaker 2: this aquatic paradise, right? 717 00:37:42,250 --> 00:37:44,770 Speaker 1: Yeah. Apparently you could see like as, you know, in 718 00:37:44,770 --> 00:37:46,730 Speaker 1: 10 feet of water, it was just crystal clear and 719 00:37:46,750 --> 00:37:50,500 Speaker 1: you could see the bottom. So I'm sure it's like 720 00:37:51,340 --> 00:37:53,719 Speaker 1: super sad to see that stuff in person, you know? 721 00:37:54,400 --> 00:37:57,180 Speaker 2: It is, but it is for sure. But it's also 722 00:37:57,219 --> 00:37:59,840 Speaker 2: very cool. Like just to see so many bottlenose dolphins 723 00:37:59,880 --> 00:38:02,660 Speaker 2: just swimming around manatees and stuff. It's, It's still a 724 00:38:02,680 --> 00:38:07,300 Speaker 2: very wondrous place. And the die-off really served as a 725 00:38:07,340 --> 00:38:10,350 Speaker 2: wake-up call for the state that was like, okay, we 726 00:38:10,430 --> 00:38:13,870 Speaker 2: actually need to start taking this much more seriously. And 727 00:38:14,070 --> 00:38:16,750 Speaker 2: I saw that in some places, some of the seagrasses 728 00:38:16,810 --> 00:38:18,770 Speaker 2: come back as much as 75%. 729 00:38:18,770 --> 00:38:19,609 Speaker 1: That's good. 730 00:38:19,860 --> 00:38:23,480 Speaker 2: Yeah. And we're talking five years, that kind of a rebound. 731 00:38:23,540 --> 00:38:28,910 Speaker 2: So all it takes is the State government actually doing 732 00:38:28,930 --> 00:38:31,110 Speaker 2: something about it. They've never done anything about it up 733 00:38:31,150 --> 00:38:33,810 Speaker 2: to that point now that they're starting to. And I 734 00:38:33,830 --> 00:38:35,830 Speaker 2: still have a friend there named Wesley who actually listens 735 00:38:35,850 --> 00:38:38,930 Speaker 2: to the podcast. And I asked him like, hey, is 736 00:38:38,950 --> 00:38:42,569 Speaker 2: this is it coming back? And he said that he's 737 00:38:42,630 --> 00:38:44,839 Speaker 2: read the same stuff, but he can't say directly that 738 00:38:44,880 --> 00:38:48,359 Speaker 2: he's noticed, you know, anything remarkable. But he did say 739 00:38:48,380 --> 00:38:49,940 Speaker 2: I was on the dock the other day. I saw 740 00:38:49,980 --> 00:38:53,719 Speaker 2: a really big one swim by. It was amazing. And 741 00:38:53,739 --> 00:38:55,500 Speaker 2: also he's in Santorini, Greece right now. 742 00:38:56,480 --> 00:38:56,680 Speaker 1: He is? 743 00:38:57,120 --> 00:38:57,259 Speaker 2: Mm-hmm. 744 00:38:58,270 --> 00:38:59,390 Speaker 1: Is that where he saw the manatee? 745 00:38:59,790 --> 00:39:02,350 Speaker 2: No. No, he was talking about at home in the 746 00:39:02,410 --> 00:39:03,330 Speaker 2: Indian River Lagoon. 747 00:39:03,989 --> 00:39:04,430 Speaker 1: Oh, I got you. 748 00:39:04,450 --> 00:39:06,810 Speaker 2: Okay. Thanks for indulging me that, Chuck. It was nice 749 00:39:06,830 --> 00:39:09,310 Speaker 2: to kind of reminisce about hanging out with manatees there. 750 00:39:09,790 --> 00:39:15,310 Speaker 1: Yeah. I mean, from what I gather, like Florida, obviously 751 00:39:15,330 --> 00:39:19,240 Speaker 1: there's like the, it seems like the people of Florida 752 00:39:19,400 --> 00:39:24,919 Speaker 1: care about the ecological systems there. And it's being wrecked 753 00:39:24,960 --> 00:39:28,370 Speaker 1: in a lot of cases by like as usual development 754 00:39:28,410 --> 00:39:31,540 Speaker 1: in the almighty dollar, but, from what I can tell 755 00:39:31,580 --> 00:39:34,940 Speaker 1: like the folks in Florida really really love all that 756 00:39:35,000 --> 00:39:36,220 Speaker 1: stuff and care about. 757 00:39:36,040 --> 00:39:38,900 Speaker 2: It yeah but I mean they also love a thriving 758 00:39:39,120 --> 00:39:42,160 Speaker 2: economy and tourist industry too so it is a balance 759 00:39:42,260 --> 00:39:45,010 Speaker 2: but yes you're right it does seem like people care 760 00:39:45,170 --> 00:39:47,730 Speaker 2: and live off the land or live in close proximity 761 00:39:47,750 --> 00:39:49,150 Speaker 2: to land more than say like um. 762 00:39:51,300 --> 00:39:53,240 Speaker 1: Name a state. Any state. Delaware. 763 00:39:53,480 --> 00:39:55,609 Speaker 2: Delaware. Thank you. 764 00:39:56,570 --> 00:39:58,630 Speaker 1: All right. So we mentioned the Save the Manatees Club. 765 00:39:58,650 --> 00:39:59,049 Speaker 1: Name a state. 766 00:39:59,190 --> 00:40:00,330 Speaker 2: Any state. 767 00:40:00,770 --> 00:40:04,049 Speaker 1: If you want to support manatees, Save the Manatees Club 768 00:40:04,170 --> 00:40:07,730 Speaker 1: is the place to do it. It was founded in 769 00:40:07,730 --> 00:40:12,250 Speaker 1: 1981 by none other than the cheeseburger in paradise himself, 770 00:40:12,390 --> 00:40:16,410 Speaker 1: Jimmy Buffett, and former Florida Senator and Governor Bob Graham. 771 00:40:16,950 --> 00:40:20,569 Speaker 1: And you can sponsor a manatee. And Charity Navigator gives 772 00:40:20,610 --> 00:40:22,710 Speaker 1: them rave reviews. They get a four out of four 773 00:40:22,730 --> 00:40:26,150 Speaker 1: rating and 85% of their funds go directly to programs. 774 00:40:26,830 --> 00:40:29,590 Speaker 1: So I am going to, we're going to adopt a 775 00:40:29,610 --> 00:40:30,969 Speaker 1: manatee as a family for sure. 776 00:40:31,110 --> 00:40:36,070 Speaker 2: That's awesome. Same. Now I feel ashamed that I haven't 777 00:40:36,110 --> 00:40:36,730 Speaker 2: ever before. 778 00:40:37,650 --> 00:40:38,989 Speaker 1: No, it's never too late. 779 00:40:39,469 --> 00:40:41,290 Speaker 2: Also, if you are a boater and you live in 780 00:40:41,330 --> 00:40:44,390 Speaker 2: Florida and there's a lot of laws and rules and 781 00:40:44,430 --> 00:40:47,129 Speaker 2: regulations you can observe to keep safe and keep from 782 00:40:47,170 --> 00:40:50,710 Speaker 2: propeller strikes, which is Another one that kills off a 783 00:40:50,770 --> 00:40:54,390 Speaker 2: lot of manatees. In fact, propeller strikes happen so much, Chuck, 784 00:40:54,489 --> 00:40:59,930 Speaker 2: some manatee researchers track individual manatees based on the unique 785 00:40:59,989 --> 00:41:02,910 Speaker 2: scar patterns on their backs from getting hit by propellers. 786 00:41:04,070 --> 00:41:06,640 Speaker 2: So boaters actually can do a lot to help manatees 787 00:41:06,719 --> 00:41:09,759 Speaker 2: as well. And one thing you can do is if 788 00:41:09,800 --> 00:41:13,520 Speaker 2: you ever see a manatee that's in distress or not mating, 789 00:41:13,620 --> 00:41:17,060 Speaker 2: but like actually in distress, or you see a calf 790 00:41:17,219 --> 00:41:20,529 Speaker 2: by itself, or one with fresh wounds or something like that, 791 00:41:20,989 --> 00:41:24,589 Speaker 2: you can report them to Florida Fish and Wildlife. If 792 00:41:24,710 --> 00:41:27,370 Speaker 2: you are in the Gulf of Mexico, though, be sure 793 00:41:27,410 --> 00:41:29,649 Speaker 2: to call it the Gulf of America, or they won't 794 00:41:29,690 --> 00:41:30,890 Speaker 2: know what you're talking about. 795 00:41:32,330 --> 00:41:35,510 Speaker 1: And slow it down. Be cool. If you're in shallow waters, 796 00:41:35,610 --> 00:41:38,230 Speaker 1: just take it easy and keep your eyes peeled. I'm 797 00:41:38,270 --> 00:41:40,690 Speaker 1: sure a lot of the boaters are aware of this 798 00:41:40,770 --> 00:41:43,689 Speaker 1: and do the right thing, but all boaters should. 799 00:41:44,390 --> 00:41:48,669 Speaker 2: Yep. Agreed, Chuck. And I think I think that brought 800 00:41:48,730 --> 00:41:49,830 Speaker 2: up listener mail, don't you? 801 00:41:52,310 --> 00:41:54,640 Speaker 1: That's right. I promised two swear words in this one 802 00:41:55,570 --> 00:41:59,640 Speaker 1: because Gray Carroll has a filthy mouth. And the email 803 00:41:59,660 --> 00:42:00,239 Speaker 1: starts as this. 804 00:42:00,440 --> 00:42:00,779 Speaker 2: Hey, guys. 805 00:42:01,040 --> 00:42:03,120 Speaker 1: Gray Carroll here. I've been a listener for a few 806 00:42:03,160 --> 00:42:05,620 Speaker 1: years now. You're really the only podcast that I enjoy 807 00:42:05,660 --> 00:42:08,920 Speaker 1: listening to, actually. I just finished A Good Walk Ruined, colon, 808 00:42:08,940 --> 00:42:11,100 Speaker 1: The History of Golf. I enjoyed this episode quite a 809 00:42:11,120 --> 00:42:14,649 Speaker 1: bit as I am myself a weekend warrior golfer. You 810 00:42:14,670 --> 00:42:16,450 Speaker 1: guys touched on the origin of how golf got the 811 00:42:16,469 --> 00:42:18,520 Speaker 1: name golf. And I just want to let you guys 812 00:42:18,540 --> 00:42:22,299 Speaker 1: know that they called it golf because the words and 813 00:42:22,800 --> 00:42:25,100 Speaker 1: were already taken. Or at least this is what I 814 00:42:25,120 --> 00:42:27,600 Speaker 1: tell myself while I shake my irons or try to 815 00:42:27,640 --> 00:42:30,930 Speaker 1: sink a third putt for bogey. Anyway, you guys are awesome. 816 00:42:30,989 --> 00:42:32,820 Speaker 1: I love how you approach the topics you talk about. 817 00:42:33,350 --> 00:42:35,110 Speaker 1: I look forward to the new episodes every week. I've 818 00:42:35,130 --> 00:42:36,590 Speaker 1: learned a lot of new things from you guys and 819 00:42:36,610 --> 00:42:38,589 Speaker 1: look forward to many more years of stuff you should know. 820 00:42:39,110 --> 00:42:40,790 Speaker 1: Thank you. Gray Carroll. 821 00:42:41,210 --> 00:42:43,190 Speaker 2: That was a great one. Thanks, Gray. Gray. 822 00:42:43,590 --> 00:42:43,930 Speaker 1: Gray. 823 00:42:44,230 --> 00:42:47,330 Speaker 2: Gray. That's what I thought. That was a good one, Gray. 824 00:42:47,550 --> 00:42:51,380 Speaker 2: And Gray referenced essentially the name of your podcast, Chuck, 825 00:42:51,400 --> 00:42:53,540 Speaker 2: and I have no idea what the name of your 826 00:42:53,600 --> 00:42:55,920 Speaker 2: podcast means. 827 00:42:56,160 --> 00:42:59,040 Speaker 1: Three Putt Bogey. We called it Three Putt Bogey because 828 00:42:59,080 --> 00:43:00,600 Speaker 1: that's kind of one of the worst things that can 829 00:43:00,640 --> 00:43:04,069 Speaker 1: happen on a hole is when you got a good 830 00:43:04,120 --> 00:43:06,370 Speaker 1: hole going and you're on the green with a chance 831 00:43:06,410 --> 00:43:08,810 Speaker 1: to like make birdie. You miss that putt and then 832 00:43:08,830 --> 00:43:10,770 Speaker 1: you're like, well, I can still make par and you 833 00:43:10,790 --> 00:43:13,410 Speaker 1: miss that putt and you sank that three putt for 834 00:43:13,430 --> 00:43:15,980 Speaker 1: bogey and then you just You say the words that 835 00:43:16,020 --> 00:43:17,700 Speaker 1: Gray said and you walk to the next hole because 836 00:43:17,880 --> 00:43:19,260 Speaker 1: every new hole is a new start. 837 00:43:19,520 --> 00:43:21,860 Speaker 2: Got it. Thanks for explaining that. It's a great title. 838 00:43:22,180 --> 00:43:24,000 Speaker 2: I liked it before, but just because of how it 839 00:43:24,040 --> 00:43:24,880 Speaker 2: sounded and looked. 840 00:43:25,440 --> 00:43:26,980 Speaker 1: Yeah. 841 00:43:27,140 --> 00:43:31,250 Speaker 2: If you want to go get Chuck and Adam's new podcast, 842 00:43:31,350 --> 00:43:33,350 Speaker 2: it's called Three Putt Bogey and you can get it 843 00:43:33,590 --> 00:43:37,980 Speaker 2: anywhere you find podcasts because it's big time. And in 844 00:43:38,040 --> 00:43:40,940 Speaker 2: the meantime, while you're listening to 3 Putt Bogey 2, 845 00:43:40,940 --> 00:43:42,580 Speaker 2: you can send us an email and tell us how 846 00:43:42,600 --> 00:43:44,739 Speaker 2: much you like 3 Putt Bogey. Chuck, is there like 847 00:43:44,780 --> 00:43:46,890 Speaker 2: an email people can email for 3 Putt Bogey? 848 00:43:47,650 --> 00:43:51,790 Speaker 1: Yeah, you can email 3 Putt Bogey Podcast and also 849 00:43:51,910 --> 00:43:54,350 Speaker 1: follow on Instagram at 3 Putt Bogey Podcast. And that's 850 00:43:54,570 --> 00:43:55,169 Speaker 1: the number three. 851 00:43:55,469 --> 00:43:58,200 Speaker 2: Very nice. And you can email us at Stuff You 852 00:43:58,219 --> 00:44:02,140 Speaker 2: Should Know, as always, at stuffpodcast.iheartradio.com. 853 00:44:05,719 --> 00:44:08,580 Speaker 1: Stuff You Should Know is a production of iHeartRadio. For 854 00:44:08,600 --> 00:44:12,730 Speaker 1: more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, 855 00:44:12,890 --> 00:44:14,650 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.