Volusia County Manatee Deaths Up 26% Since 2014

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Volusia County, FL - A report from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission shows an increase in the deaths of Florida's "gentle giants."

Recently, FWC published their 2017 Manatee Mortality Table, which details the number of manatee deaths throughout the entire state of Florida.

A look through the past four years of reports available shows that, in Volusia County, manatee deaths have spiked 26%.

In 2014, a total of 29 manatees were killed in Volusia County, with the most deaths being contributed to perinatal deaths, deaths that occur just before or after birth.

The next year, the number of total deaths and the number of perinatal deaths dropped. However, watercraft-related deaths jumped 50% from four to eight for the entire year.

2016 brought an increase to the total number of deaths with both watercraft and perinatal deaths increasing to 12 and 11, respectively.

Their latest report for 2017 marks another increase in watercraft-related deaths and undetermined causes of deaths with 14 and 12. The number of undetermined deaths jumped 67% from 2014 to 2017.

A full look at the entire state shows that manatee deaths overall have increased 31%, with 2014 ending at 371 and 2017 ending at 538.

You can view FWC's archived manatee mortality reports by clicking here. Reports date back all the way to 1974.

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