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Rescuers say the manatee was rescued in January in Texas and
spent nearly seven months recuperating from severe injuries at
the SeaWorld marine mammal park in San Antonio.
"The animal was in critical condition, cold-stunted, emaciated
and very, very sick," said Nicholas Ricci, senior animal care
specialist for SeaWorld Parks.
Once the manatee recovered, it was time to return to its natural
environment along the western coast of Florida.
That's when German shipping giant DHL, part of the Deutsche Post
DHL Group, stepped in to transport the large mammal via cargo
plane to release it back into wild.
"We think we've given him the best chance at success, and we
just can't tell you how much of a partnership story this was
from start to finish," said Terri Calleson, Florida manatee
recovery lead for U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. "It was a
total team effort."
Monica Ross, director of manatee research and conservation at
Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute, said the manatee
is being fitted with a GPS satellite tag along with a very high
frequency (VHF) transmitter to be able to track the mammal.
"What they're trying to do is to assess how manatees use habitat
outside of Florida," said Ross. "So, we're kind of hoping he'll
want to try and go back to Texas a little bit. We'll get some
good data in the movement, but then we're hoping by releasing
him here, he understands this is where he needs to come back for
warm water in the winter time."
(Reporting by Octavio Jones; Writing by Eric Cox; Editing by
Diane Craft)
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