2 Ailing FL Manatee Calves Find Warm Welcome At Ohio Zoo

COLUMBUS, OH — Although she's known by the rather unflattering moniker of Stubby, she has become one of the most popular residents of the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in Ohio.

In this landlocked state, Stubby the Florida manatee is not only a rarity, she's a celebrity. She's well known for her gentle, loving nature, voluntarily taking on the role of surrogate mother for ailing, orphaned manatee calves that arrive at the zoo for rehabilitation.

Her latest charges are manatee calves Einstein and Acorn, who were flown 1,024 miles from ZooTampa to the Columbus, Ohio, zoo in a specially equipped aircraft with massive tanks to safely accommodate the two marine mammals jointly weighing more than 700 pounds.

Upon their arrival Saturday evening, Einstein and Acorn were welcomed by Stubby, who promptly took them under her wing, providing succor for the young manatees as they adjusted to this strange, new environment far from their home on Florida's east coast.

Stubby is a longtime resident of the Ohio zoo. She was injured by the propeller of a speeding boat and has been classified as non-releasable due to the severity of her injuries. As the zoo's resident manatee, she's taken it upon herself to greet all new arrivals and show them around the habitat.

Both calves will be cared for at the Ohio zoo until they're deemed healthy enough to be flown back to Florida and released into their native waters.

While it may seem a long distance to transport the manatee calves for rehabilitation, their trip to Columbus will free up valuable space at ZooTampa so marine veterinarians can devote their attention to helping an unprecedented number of manatees requiring medical care this year.

As of this week, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, there have been 674 manatee deaths in the first four months of this year. That's nearly three times more manatee deaths than were reported during the first four months of 2020. The five-year annual average for manatee deaths from 2015 to 2020 was 578.

Marine scientists are still grappling with the hows and whys of this alarming mortality rate among "sea cows," so nicknamed because they graze on seagrass and other aquatic plants.

Both ZooTampa and the Columbus Zoo are accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquarium and are active members of the Manatee Rescue & Rehabilitation Partnership, a cooperative group of nonprofit, private, state and federal entities dedicated to monitoring, rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing manatees.

From Tampa To Columbus

Einstein and Acorn were rescued by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission last fall.

Einstein arrived at ZooTampa in August after being discovered in the Steinhatchee River with his injured mom. Unfortunately, Einstein's mom did not survive her injuries, and Einstein was too young to survive on his own.

Manatee calves are bonded to their mothers for at least the first year of life, although they often remain close to their mothers for two years. Calves begin nursing from their mothers at birth and start supplementing their diets of mother's milk by nibbling on plants a few weeks after birth.

The calf is not only completely dependent upon its mother for nutrition but also learns about feeding and resting areas, travel routes and warm water refuges from her.

As an orphaned calf, Einstein won't be released until he weighs at least 600 pounds. Right now, Einstein weighs 470 pounds and is considered to be in stable condition. When full grown, he could weigh as much as 3,000 pounds.

Acorn arrived at ZooTampa in November. He was found floating off a dock in Crystal River, emaciated and dying. His mother who was nowhere to be found. He's been stable for a few months and is progressively gaining weight. He weighed 315 pounds when he arrived at ZooTampa and now weighs 430 pounds.

Experts In Manatee Rehabilitation

“This iconic Florida species has been at the heart of our commitment to conservation for more than 30 years," said Dr. Cynthia Stringfield, senior vice president of animal health, education and conservation at ZooTampa. "Both manatees are doing extremely well in their rehabilitation; and we are confident that with continued care at the Columbus Zoo, Einstein and Acorn will be fully rehabilitated by winter and will be able to return to Florida waters."

Stringfield added the flight from Tampa to Columbus went off without a hitch.

"A stellar team of animal care professionals, curators and veterinarians from both organizations oversaw the transfer, which went smoothly," she said.

Staff at both zoos have become somewhat experts at transporting manatees by air. Einstein and Acorn are the 34th and 35th manatees to be flown to the Columbus Zoo for rehabilitation since the zoo joined the Manatee Rescue & Rehabilitation Partnership in 1999.

In addition to Stubby, Acorn and Einstein join Squirrel and Scampi, two orphaned manatees who are continuing their rehabilitation after arriving at the Columbus Zoo on Oct. 22.

“The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium is very proud to collaborate with our colleagues at ZooTampa and other partners through the Manatee Rescue & Rehabilitation Partnership program to help make a difference for Acorn, Einstein and other manatees who are facing serious challenges in their native ranges,” said Becky Ellsworth, curator of the Columbus Zoo’s Shores and Aquarium region.

The calves' visit to Columbus also gives the community a chance to observe this unusual marine mammal with its paired flippers, large, spoon-shaped tail, bristles around its muzzle and funny, wrinkled countenance.

"As the manatees continue their rehabilitation journeys and receive expert care at our facilities, guests also have the opportunity to learn more about the important actions we can all take to help protect manatees and their ocean homes," she said. "Finding conservation solutions is a collective effort, and our work continues to be driven by the inspiration we find in connecting people to wildlife so that they join us in being a part of protecting these species’ future.”

The Columbus Zoo was the first program partner outside the state of Florida and is one of only two facilities outside of Florida to care for manatees. Its role in the MRP is as a second-stage rehabilitation facility that provides a temporary home for manatees until they are ready for release back to the wild.

As one of only four manatee critical care centers in the United States, ZooTampa and its state-of-the-art David A Straz Jr. Center has cared for more than 500 injured, sick and orphaned manatees with the majority returned to Florida waters. Its team of animal care and medical staff tend to manatees 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Manatees In Crisis

The staff at ZooTampa is joining other agencies, including the Florida Wildlife and Conservation Commission Institute in St. Petersburg, which is the research arm of the FWC, the Florida Aquarium, which operates a manatee research and rehabilitation center in Apollo Beach, the Clearwater Marine Aquarium and the Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium in Sarasota in attempting to determine the reason for the high mortality rates among manatees.

Protected under the Endangered Species Act and under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, there are an estimated 13,000 manatees, with more than 6,500 living in the waters of the southeastern United States and Puerto Rico.

In past years, boat strikes have been responsible for a number of manatee deaths. But that's not the case this year, according to the FWC. Only 31 of the 674 manatees that have died since Jan. 1 were killed by boats.

Necropsies conducted on manatees show a range of causes of death including natural deaths from age and perinatal distress, cold stress, deaths after being trapped in a flood gate or lock, exposure to red tide and other algae blooms, and loss of seagrass, the manatee's major source of food.

As of April 16, 462 of the manatees that died this year have not undergone necropsies.

See related stories:

• Manatee Deaths Surge In Florida, Experts Say Starvation Possible
• Video: Rare Twin Manatee Calves Spotted By See Through Canoe
• Study Shows 1 Out Of 4 Manatees Have Scars From 10 Boat Strikes
• Manatee Death Rate Surges In FL During First Months Of 2021