Manatee Dies After Rescue from Cape Cod Waters
Dennis the Manatee Died En Route to Sea World in Orlando, Florida
Oct 12, 2008
It was around the first week of October, 2008 when a rather unusual visitor arrived in the waters of Sesuit Harbor, just off the shores of Dennis - a seaside town not too far from Boston, located on the Cape Cod region of Massachusetts.
A wayward manatee - affectionately called "Dennis" after the small town near where he was first spotted - had wandered unusually far north into the 64-degree waters of New England, far from his subtropical home in Florida. Dennis captured the attention and affection of many Bostonians, who were rooting for his successful rescue, rehabilitation and eventual release back into the wild. But sadly, Dennis the manatee died just hours before reaching his destination at SeaWorld in Orlando, Florida.
In the days just before his rescue, Cape Cod residents flocked to the docks of Dennis by the hundreds to catch a glimpse of the manatee named Dennis. Then, help arrived to rescue the manatee, who was doomed to almost certain death in the cold waters off Cape Cod. Endangered manatees thrive in the warm waters of harbors and estuaries off the coast of Florida.
The Rescue of Dennis the Manatee
On Saturday, October 11, 2008, four experienced marine mammal rescuers and rehabilitators from SeaWorld in Orlando, Florida arrived in Cape Cod to coordinate the rescue for Dennis the manatee, in cooperation with animal lovers from the International Fund for Animal Welfare.
The rescue operation went precisely as planned - two boats were positioned on either side of the 800-pound juvenile male sea cow, who was netted and brought ashore. His body temperature - which had dropped from the 90s to temperatures in the 70s - was warmed and a fork lift was used to maneuver Dennis the manatee into a rental truck for his 20-hour ride to a rehabilitation center at Sea World in Orlando, Florida.
An initial examination of Dennis the manatee revealed that he appeared to have an eye injury, but he appeared to be stable, so the SeaWorld staff and rescuers from the International Fund for Animal Welfare set off with Dennis on a 20-hour journey from Cape Cod, Massachusetts to Orlando, Florida.
The Death of Dennis the Manatee
Marine mammal experts were ready and waiting at SeaWorld in Orlando for the arrival of Dennis the manatee, whom they were eager to rehabilitate for an eventual release back into the wild
But sadly, this was not to be. Dennis passed away during the 20-hour drive to SeaWorld, just hours away from his destination, as Katie Touhey, the emergency release manager for marine mammals, strandings and entanglements with the International Fund for Animal Welfare, told WBZ Newsradio 1030 in Boston: "What we do know is that the transport was actually going very well. The team from SeaWorld had given me an update that the animal was transporting quite well. His temperature was coming up and they were actually quite optimistic. But unfortunately the animal stopped breathing right about when they crossed the border into Florida. He passed away quietly...He was in excellent care and all that could be done, had been done."
A necropsy performed on the manatee's remains ultimately revealed that "cold stress" was the cause of death for Dennis the manatee.
