When is Manatee Appreciation Day 2020

When is National Manatee Appreciation Day in 2020? – Are you ready to answer this question? – To tell you the truth, as a rule contemporary people can’t give the certain reply without any prompts given from our side and most part of them have never heard about this special occasion existence. We are sure that it is not fair, and this is the reason why we are going to discuss this event in details.

History

Talking about the matter what day Manatee Appreciation Day in 2020 is, we would like to inform our followers about the facts concerning the historical background of this holiday appearance.

People have long realized that manatees, in order to survive, need protection. That is the explanation why in 1893 in the American state of Florida a special law was introduced to protect these animals. Over the past time, security measures have repeatedly been reinforced, and since 1972, the killing of the “sea cow” or inflicting heavy damage on it has been punished with a fine of $ 20,000 and six months’ imprisonment.

In recent years, a surge of publicity has led to the fact that the legislature of the State of Florida issued a law on the establishment here of a manatee reserve. In other areas, trips on boats with outboard motors are limited or speed limits are imposed.

Control overflights in recent years have shown an increase in the number of cubs of manatee. This suggests that the creatures, if given the chance, are probably themselves able to increase their numbers.

In turn, not so long ago in Miami, representatives inhabiting the local zoo began to show enthusiastic viewers what they have been taught for years of life in captivity. The purpose of this unusual case is to draw people’s attention to them. After all, many people cause harm to these animals, because they are simply afraid of them – large and incomprehensible.

Meaning

What does Manatee Appreciation Day mean? Frankly speaking, we can answer this question instead of you. Why? – The matter is that it is only up to you to decide whether to celebrate this holiday or to forget completely about its existence.

All in all manatees are charming and mild giants with meek behavior and conquering curiosity. Most part of the day, they may be seen either in a dream or at a meal.

Unfortunately, problems such as loss of habitat and damage from the propellers of motor boats put these animals at risk. According to calculations, in nature there are about 7634-10434 American manatees. Data on the population of Amazonian manatees are absent, but experienced scientists think that their number is also small. It’s a sad thing that such amazing creatures are under threat of extinction.

Definition

Discovering the question “When is International Manatee Appreciation Day 2020?” we can’t but mention the purposes for this special occasion creation. The establishers tried to draw the public attention to these animals’ problems caused by humans.

These funny creatures do not have natural enemies. And although the animals do not look particularly strong, they are huge. The newborn baby manatee weighs about 18 kg, but grows to almost 4 meters in length, having a mass of 800 kg. These dimensions protect the manatee from attacks by sharks and alligators, but do not protect them from humans. For example, in the US state of Florida today only a very small number of representatives die from natural causes. More often they are crushed by boats in narrow shipping canals, animals sink in control locks and are cut by open propellers of boats.

The devices are just one of the many dangers the creatures facing today. In canals and small rivers, they are often thrown by the stones of teenagers, they were found with darts, arrows and fishing hooks sticking out of skins. As they eat plants in coastal waters, these animals often visit areas that are most populated by humans. Due to this, surviving today’s urban explosion to manatees will be very, very difficult.

Traditions

When is Manatee Appreciation Day in 2020, calendar will surely remind you. This is not a problem to memorize. It will happen as usually on the last Wednesday in March. So it will be on March 29th. If you are going to celebrate this special occasion, you have to remember that the date of its celebration is not fixed.

As you can understand this holiday is not an official one, so you shouldn’t expect for any events organized on the state level. Do you want to have something special? – Well, why not to devote this day to this animal discovery. In fact there are many films, books, documentaries and Internet articles. It means that you are free to choose the direction interesting just for you.

Invite your relatives or friends and organize a discussion about these animals. You see, beginning of the first spring month is a perfect time for cozy gatherings.

National Manatee Appreciation Day Facts

Investigating the question “What is the date of Manatee Appreciation Day in 2020?” we want to demonstrate our readers as many surprising pieces of information devoted to these creatures as it is possible.

• For example, talking about these amazing creatures we would like to mention that in accordance with some specialists’ points of view, the English name of the creature comes from the Caribbean word “manati”. The surprising thing is that it means “female breast”.
• These funny creatures are also called “sea cows”. It is believed that this name was given to them because they are herbivores type. Taking into account this feature they resemble typical cows.
• The animals are considered to be migratory. In cold winter they are mostly concentrated mostly in Florida. However, during the hot period they can be noticed far to the west direction, in states such as Texas, or even far to the north part, for example, in Massachusetts.
• Manatees move rather slowly: they can swim at a speed of just 5-8 km / h.
• In fact these mammals do not have natural enemies. However, people are responsible for the fact that these animals are close to extinction level, mainly because of collisions with ships.
• Female representatives usually give birth to only cub. It happened every 2-5 years. According to scientific research, their lifespan reaches 60-70 years. Meanwhile, studies conducted by the specialized Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission have shown that only some individuals come through the 30-year mark, which is significantly lower than their typical life expectancy.
• There is a belief that famous person Christopher Columbus as well as other early well-known explorers and travelers confused them with those they considered mermaids. Frankly speaking, it is quite difficult to understand what common features they saw in them and fairy-tale characters.
• Their appearance is deceptive. In general, they have minimal fat protection. And this is the reason, which makes them so susceptible to low ocean temperatures. Nowadays it is known quite well that, for example, in 2010, in the American state of Florida, 246 representatives died because of the stress, obtained as a result of abnormally cold water.
• Manatees are considered to be herbivores. Every day they have to eat the huge amount of food, which equals to 10-15% of their weight.