THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, July 20, 1996 TAG: 9607200209
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: STAFF AND WIRE REPORT
LENGTH: 68 lines
Chessie is missing.
And scientists - who have been tracking the wayward manatee off and on since he was rescued from the chilly waters of the Chesapeake Bay in fall of 1994 - are hoping somebody spots him soon.
The 1,200-pound bewhiskered and beloved young male sea cow slipped free of the radio collar used to track him on July 10 while cruising the Intracoastal Waterway near Beaufort two days before Hurricane Bertha hit the North Carolina coast.
Though scientists believe he is fine, they can't help but worry, so they're asking people from the Carolinas northward to the Chesapeake Bay and New England to watch for him.
Chessie is easy to spot because he's got only one gray scar. Most manatees have far more scars, the result of unfortunate encounters with boat propellers. And, he's got the number 46 on his back, a permanent marking imprinted on its skin by marine biologists.
If Chessie follows his historic and unusual swimming patterns, he - and his colleagues - could be headed our way.
Chessie first grabbed public attention in the fall of 1994 when he was rescued from the Chesapeake Bay, which is considered far beyond the range of Florida manatees.
That visit was cut short by scientists who feared that the Bay's cool autumn waters would kill him. He was captured and flown back to Florida. But after he was released, he headed north again when the weather got warm.
On the way, he stopped by Hampton Roads in July and by August was swimming in Long Island Sound. Then, after heading back to Florida, Chessie gave scientists the slip off the coast of New Haven Connecticut.
He was finally spotted back in Florida waters in November and was refitted with a new transmitter in June just in time to head north again. Prior to his disappearance before the storm, he had been traveling 10 to 20 miles a day along the Intracoastal Waterway. He's probably still doing just fine.
``There is no cause for alarm,'' said Linda L. Taylor, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Chesapeake Bay office. ``He's familiar with tropical storms. They are tropical animals.''
``Finding the transmitter without Chessie is a good sign,'' Taylor said.
Chessie's radio transmitter was attached with a 6-foot-long plastic tether that is designed to bob to the surface and transmit whenever the manatee stops swimming. The signal reveals the animal's position and its diving and swimming activity.
Chessie is part of a research and tracking project designed to gather data on the endangered mammals' range and habitat and is one of about 18 Florida manatees being tracked. The information, gathered by satellites, is used in behavioral studies and to develop policies to protect manatees.
The manatees' survival is threatened by boats, the destruction of sea grass beds and the development of waterfronts. Because they must surface for air, they are highly susceptible to strikes by boats and their propellers. And, the animals have a slow reproduction cycle, making recovery difficult.
European explorers reported manatees in the Chesapeake in the 1500s, but Chessie's visit in 1994 was the first such visit documented in modern times. It suggested to scientists that such annual migrations may once have been common. MEMO: This story was compiled from reports by The Baltimore Sun, The
Associated Press and staff writer Lynn Waltz.
WHERE TO CALL:
Anyone spotting a manatee is asked to report details of the sighting
to the National Biological Service in Gainesville, Fla., at (352)
372-2571; the National Marine Fisheries Service in Silver Spring, Md.,
at (301) 713-2289; or the National Aquarium in Baltimore at (410)
576-8723. by CNB