A Large Manatee Spotted in the Appomattox River

Earlier this week, a large manatee was sighted in the Appomattox River in the Tri-Cities, following which Virginia Wildlife officials are on a hunt for the marine mammal to verify its existence.

A resident, Cody Beeler, shot a video of the manatee swimming in the Appomattox River near Colonial Heights. He posted pictures and video of the manatee over the weekend on Twitter and Instagram. This called for some action from the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, who sent officials to confirm the presence of the manatee in the river.

This is the first time since 2009 that a manatee has been sighted, reports Progress-Index.

Mystified at the presence of the manatee, Lee Walker, from the game and fisheries department said, "The unusually warm weather this summer could be a cause for the sighting as the animal will typically follow warm water."

The officials have not yet confirmed the presence of the marine mammal, but are cautioning boaters on the river to watch out for the animal. And if sighted, the officials plan on letting the marine mammal go its way.

The herbivorous marine mammals 'Manatees' are also known as sea cows and are an endangered species. They spend half of their day sleeping in water, surfacing every 20 minutes regularly for air. They generally prefer shallow waters and can swim 5-8  kilometers per hour. They display signs of complex associated learning and long term memory. Gestation period of a manatee lasts for 12 months. They eat 60 percent of the plant species and they also devour small fish. They face a threat from habitat destruction and natural conditions such as higher temperatures and disease.

A greater threat to manatees comes from red tide, where toxic substances from the marine algae have a lethal effect on the creature. The Fish and Wildlife Research Institute in Florida reported   a record 300 manatee deaths due to the red tide in June.