Manatees seen in South Mississippi waters

Manatees seen in South Mississippi waters
Updated: Jul. 30, 2018 at 8:20 PM CDT
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GULFPORT, MS (WLOX) - Marsha Whaley and her husband were fishing this weekend at James Hill Park when a couple of manatees made a surprise appearance.

She tells me some other folks at the park saw them first, and she thought it was a joke. "I thought the people next to us were drunk or something," Whaley said. "Then we saw the manatees and realized it was real."

As far as Manatee sightings are concerned, Moby Solangi with the Institute of Marine Mammal Studies (IMMS) says while it's a bit unusual to see them in our waters, it's not exactly uncommon.

"We usually see them in the wintertime," Solangi said. "These are probably stragglers. We don't know why they come in this part of the world."

Solangi also says the manatees were seen Sunday in Bernard Bayou and the Big Lake area. Both spots, he says, are full of the warm water these mammoth mammals enjoy.

"They must have food," he said. "This is brackish water. They need to be out of here, but if this is where they want to be, that's fine."

That is, if the manatees don't meander in front of any boat traffic in the area. Solangi says boat propellers are the prime suspects whenever manatees end up dead.

"I think we need to let all the boaters know that these are very slow moving, very large animals," Solangi added. "They may look like the big trunk of a tree. Most manatees get hurt by boat propellers, so please be on the lookout."

Otherwise,Solangi says, if you see these gentle giants while you're fishing or on the water, it's best to enjoy them from a safe distance, and mind your manatee manners.

"We just want them to be careful," he said. "We're going to watch them, as long as they're eating and swimming ok, we're going to leave them alone."

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