Crystal River is called "The Gem of the Nature Coast". It is both a river and the name of the city that grew up along its banks. One of its "gems" is the manatee. Tied to the Gulf of Mexico, tarpon, dolphins, and jacks often visit during high tides. Manatees, tropical mammals called sea cows, owe their lives to the warmth offered by the springs that bubble up, creating the Crystal River.

The rising waters exit the springs at a constant 72 degrees. So people visit the springs in summer to cool off, and manatees visit them in winter to warm up!
Manatees swim up channels like this to find hot springs.

WINTER FACTS! On the first of February, 2000, the water in the Gulf of Mexico measured 59 degrees F. Brrr. A manatee stranded there, or one that doesn't know where to find warm waters could die.

Research has shown that water temperature below 60.8°F (16°C) causes manatees to change their behavior, and stop eating. Since the grasses they eat are low in nutrition, it takes a lot of eating to maintain health. Scientists believe that when manatees stop eating, they can't keep their body temperature high enough to be healthy. (Think about how you would feel surrounded by very cold water all the time!)

The sea cow teaches her calf many things while it is with her for 2 years or more--like what grasses to eat, what can be danger, and WHERE TO FIND WARM WATER! You can understand that Florida's warm spring waters are life savers to the manatees, and other warmth-seeking critters.


Map by Crystal River Tourist Development Council
Inverness, FL (352) 637-9811

As gulf and ocean waters warm in spring, manatees may swim up the eastern coast of the U.S. as far as Virginia, and the Chesapeake Bay (remember Chessie?), or along the southern coast to Texas. But as waters cool after summer, manatees head south to Florida for the winter months. Sometimes Crystal River is host to 300 or more manatees, crowding into the headwaters to stay warm. What must the people who use the waterways do?

SUMMER FACTS!

When air and waters warm, people head to their boats for fun and adventure. Manatees, too, head out of the rivers that sheltered them in Winter. They roam more freely along the south eastern coasts of the U.S. when the Ocean and Gulf temperatures warm in the Spring. While many manatees stay in the Crystal River year-round, many swim into the Gulf of Mexico. Gulf waters range in the high 80’s and low 90’s in Summer.

Though the sea grasses grow better in Summer, and cold temperatures are not a threat any longer, the warm waters often support red-tide. These toxic, harmful algal blooms (HAB) can turn the waters rusty-colored, rob the water of oxygen, and kill many fish. Manatees and other marine mammals can die, too, as the HAB affects their lungs.