It is the aquatic mammal that travels furthest inland in Africa: there are records on the Niger river in Mali, more than 2,000 km from the coast.
From African Manatee
It is protected by traditional taboos in several West African cultures, which regard it as a transformed ancestor.
From African Manatee
It is the only sirenian that lives entirely in fresh water all its life, never entering the sea.
From Amazonian Manatee
It is the only sirenian that never enters the sea: its whole life is spent in the fresh waters of the Amazon basin.
From Amazonian Manatee
During the dry season it can go weeks or months with hardly any food, trapped in lakes where no vegetation is left, surviving thanks to an extremely slow metabolism and the fat built up during the floods.
From Amazonian Manatee
Its molars are replaced continuously throughout life: new teeth erupt at the back and move forward, replacing those worn down by the sand on the seagrass.
From Florida Manatee
Snooty, born in 1948, was the longest-lived manatee ever documented and reached 69 years.
From Florida Manatee
It has to turn its whole body to look sideways.
From West Indian Manatee

Ecosystems