Boycott Florida

By hrynyshyn on April 11, 2007.

In response to the news that the US Fish and Wildlife Service is even thinking about downlisting the Florida manatee from "endangered" to "threatened," I make this modest proposal: boycott Florida.

Trichechus manatus is considered vulnerable on habitat-wide level by the IUCN - World Conservation Union, and the outlook for Florida's sub-population is not rosy. Carl Hiaasen, a long-time defender of what's left of Florida's wildlife, had this to say last June:

A non-scientist looking at the mortality data might wonder why they're so upbeat. Last year, 396 manatees - more than 10 percent of the estimated population - died. Of those, only 81 fatalities were classified as natural.

This year, manatees are perishing at a record pace. As of May 31, there were 195 known deaths in Florida.

Those sort of statistics don't exactly make you want to dance a jig with Rodney Barreto. Nor does the final report of the state Biological Review Panel, which says there's a better-than-even chance that the manatee population will shrink by 20 percent over the next 30 years.

And this from Greg Laden:

The Florida (state) equivalent "endangered" list dropped the Manatee last year, so they can't count on state-level protection.

So, until the powers that be announce they have abandoned any thought of downlisting, boycott the entire state. That means no Disneyworld for the kids and no scientific conferences for the parents.

Read more here, here, here, here, and here.

Tags
ecology

More like this

Ludicrous legislation proposal on manatee status
As alerted by other ScienceBloggers, I have recently learned that the US Fish & Wildlife Service is proposing to the White House that Florida's manatee be removed from the "endangered" list, downgrading the marine mammal to merely "threatened." The result would be a relaxation of boating…
Public Input Requested on Manatee Issue
Good news! Florida is opening a public comment period from May 1-June 14, and the decision about whether to downgrade their status from endangered will be postponed until after that period. The final plan will be presented to commissioners in September. If approved, the state will upgrade the…
The Speed of Nascar's Fred Lorenzen, the Brains of Fred Flintstone
The month to maim marine mammal legislation... A symposium at the United Nations in New York last Friday opened discussions about whether the Japanese should resume whaling of humpback whales that travel off the coast of Australia. Daniel Pauly was at the meeting and refuted the Japanese argument…
Manatees To Stay Protected in Florida, For Now
Perhaps some of you may remember me mentioning the plight of the Florida manatee a few months back, specifically that their status as an endangered species was being petitioned by the powerful boating lobby. This would have meant that many of the special protections that manatees enjoyed, such as…

I just finished a 10 year retroactive Florida boycott. Has it helped?

At around 1900, Turkey Vultures were nearly extinct. Now, the populations are up to annoyance levels. Two things happened to turn them around. 1) we stopped shooting them. 2) we introduced a preditor that kills indescriminantly and leaves the bodies around for the vultures to eat (the car).

So, what will it take to bring the manatee back? As i understand it, we kill them with boats. So, clearly, we need to outlaw boats. Have i missed something? Oh. What do manatees eat?

I hope they'll let me keep my canoe. I promise not to bring it to Florida.

thanks so much! keep up the heat on the criminals.