653 manatees have died so far in Florida waters, including two in Franklin County.
Most deaths this year occurred in January and February when manatees migrated through the Indian River Lagoon, where the majority of seagrass has died off.
Many of those manatees starved to death.
Boat strikes have killed at least 49 manatees this year.
Another 48 died at birth or shortly afterward.
Cold stress killed 9 more and 23 deaths were by unknown causes.
There have been two recorded manatee deaths in Franklin County this year.
One was found in the Gulf of Mexico in February; the cause of death is not known.
The second was found in April at Cash's Creek in Eastpoint and was listed as a perinatal death.
There have been no manatee deaths listed so far in Gulf or Wakulla Counties.
It is estimated that about 7500 manatees live in Florida waters.
The manatee was once classified as endangered by the federal government, but it was reclassified as threatened in 2017.
If boaters took a few simple precautions, the number of manatee deaths could be cut substantially.
Precautions include abiding by posted boat speed limits, staying in marked channels, and wearing polarized sunglasses while boating to give you improved vision.
Also don’t boat over grass flats or areas where manatees congregate.
If you find a sick or injured manatee you should report it to the Florida Wildlife Alert Hot line at 888-404-3922.
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