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Amanateewith the give-and-take " Trump " scratched into its back has spark a Union probe that could end in jail clip for the perpetrator . Whether the mutilation will harm the beast ’s long - term health , however , is not yet known .
According to theCitrus County Chronicle , the Trichechus manatus was find swimming in Blue Hole in the headwaters of the Homosassa River on the Gulf Coast of Florida . In large , chapiter letter , the word " Trump " stretched across the animal ’s back almost from its the Trichechus manatus ’s cervix to its tail in large , chapiter varsity letter . It was n’t clear how the intelligence was etched and how much damage was done to the Trichechus manatus ’s skin in the mental process . However , even nonaged harassment of manatees can moderate to major consequence . belatedly last class , a Florida sauceboat captain was sentenced to 50 hours of community serviceafter poke a manatee on the backwith a sportfishing rod .
A west Indian manatee (Trichechus manatus) was found in Florida with “Trump” scratched into its back.
Trichechus manatus are listed as " threatened " under theEndangered Species Act , and harassing or harming them is a Class A , Union criminal offense penal by a $ 50,000 fine and/or up to one - year in federal prison , Florida Fish & Wildlife ( USFW ) officer Craig Cavanna , who is heading up the investigation , separate the Chronicle . Manatees are also protect by the Marine Mammals Protection Act and by Florida res publica law .
State and Union wildlife authorities were look into after a manatee with “ Trump ” etched on its back was spotted in Florida on Sunday . https://t.co/6CpOTv5z5NJanuary 12 , 2021
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Placid , slow - move manatees are large enough to have no natural marauder , but they are often injured by sauceboat collisions , according to the nonprofit Save the Manatees . White or grey scratch , as seen on the manatee in Blue Hole , indicate that the lesion has healed . By adulthood , many if not most manatee have at least one scar , U.S. Geological Survey biologist Cathy Beck pronounce in 2016 in aUSFW Q&A. Most healed manatees seem to be goodly despite multiple scars , Beck said , but others may not be , and little is known about how scarring affects manatees ' farseeing - condition health and generative scene .
West Indian manatees ( Trichechus manatus ) are migratory herbivores . They winter in Florida ’s warm water , but move as far north as Massachusetts in the summertime months . Their winter range in shallow H2O and estuary brings them in airless contact with human Panama and swimmers .
Anyone with cognition of the incident should call the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission at 888 - 404 - FWCC ( 3922 ) . The Center for Biological Diversity is offering a $ 5,000 reward for information leading to “ a conviction for the cruel and illegal mutilation of a peril Florida Trichechus manatus , ” officialssaid in a statementMonday ( Jan. 11 ) .
in the beginning published on Live Science .
