Mar 18, 2009 5:47 pm US/Eastern
Miami Seaquarium Releases Rehabbed Manatee
Tequesta Was Released In Coral Gables
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
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Staffers at the Miami Seaquarium load Tequesta the manatee into a truck that will take him to his new home in the wild.
CBS
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Miami Seaquarium staffers keep Tequesta's skin moist as the prep to release him in a Coral Gables canal.
CBS
The staff at the Miami Seaquarium bid 'adios' to a young manatee named Tequesta on Wednesday as they released him back into the wild.
Early Wednesday morning the three and half year old manatee was gently loaded into a vehicle for a quick trip to Coral Gables where it was released into a canal.
In 2007, the orphaned manatee was rescued by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission in Tequesta, a city in northern Palm Beach County. Miami Seaquarium Curator Robert Rose told
CBS4's Liv Davalos that Tequesta was suffering from cold stress when he was brought in which can jeopardize a manatee's immune system and cause frost bite to the skin.
"Certainly he came in a critical situation last year but over the last year he has been eating well and socializing with the other animals so our prognosis is excellent," said Rose.
Tequesta thrived at the Miami Seaquarium. Tipping the scales at barely 200 pounds when he was rescued, vets fed him a milk formula until they were able to graduate to lettuce and carrots and sea grass. Rose said now he will have the warmer months ahead to get used to living in the wild.
"It's a perfect weight and he's 2 1/2 three years old so he is the right length. We passed all the cold fronts in South Florida so he has the spring and summer and fall to get acclimated out there," said Rose.
Before he was released, a micro chip was implanted in Tequesta's shoulder to identify him so Seaquarium vets can check on him in about a year to see how he's doing.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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