Translations:AY Honors/Marine Mammals/Answer Key/15/en
Trichechus inunguis
Amazonian Manatee (Trichechus inunguis)
Where found: The Amazonian Manatee lives in the freshwater habitats of the Amazon River and its tributaries.
Description: The Amazonian Manatee's color is brownish gray and they have thick, wrinkled skin, often with coarse hair, or "whiskers." Its main predator is man. The three species of manatees, and the closely related Dugong, are unique in that they are the only plant-eating marine mammals.
Trichechus manatus
West Indian Manatee (Trichechus manatus)
Where found: As its name implies, the West Indian Manatee lives in the West Indies, generally in shallow coastal areas. However, it is known to withstand large changes in water salinity, and so have also been found in shallow rivers and estuaries. It is limited to the tropics and sub-tropics due to an extremely low metabolic rate and lack of a thick layer of insulating body fat. During summer, these large mammals have even been found as far north as Rhode Island.
Description: The West Indian Manatee is a manatee, and the largest surviving member of the aquatic mammal order Sirenia. The West Indian Manatee is surprisingly agile in water, and individuals have been seen doing rolls, somersaults, and even swimming upside-down. Manatees are not territorial and do not have complex predator avoidance behavior, as they live in areas without natural predators.
Trichechus senegalensis
African Manatee (Trichechus senegalensis)
Where found: African Manatees are found in coastal marine and estuarine habitats, and in fresh water river systems along the west coast of Africa from the Senegal River south to the Kwanza River in Angola, including areas in Gambia, Liberia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Mali, Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, Republic of the Congo, and Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Description: The African Manatee is a species of manatee, and is the least studied of the four species of sirenians. Photos of African Manatees are very rare; although very little is known about this species, scientists think they are similar to the West Indian Manatees.
