The World Needs More Manatees | STUFF YOU SHOULD KNOW

[music]. >> Welcome to Stuff You Should Know, a. production of iHeart Radio. >> [music]. >> Hey, and welcome to the podcast. I'm. Josh, and there's Chuck, and Jerry's. here too. And this is Stuff You Should. Know, the I can't believe we haven't. done this one yet episode. >> Yeah, can I tell you something that. happened just now while you were away? >> Yeah. >> So Josh, as you do traditionally, I hope this is. not revealing too much, between episodes you got up to go to the.

little podcaster's room. >> I tinkled. >> [laughter]. >> Okay. And. so Jerry, we're we're doing an episode. on manatees, and she said sea puppies. And I said sea cows. And she said, who. are puppies? >> What? >> Yeah. >> Jerry's brain is broke. >> Well, I think she just was like, no, I. called them puppies. >> I see. I get it now. I get it. She was saying. who I thought she was saying like, who. are puppies? Like a a completely.

unrelated non sequitur. Like if sea cows. aren't puppies, then who are puppies? >> I don't know. Maybe I read it wrong. >> how she was saying it now. >> Man, we're losing it here in our middle. to old age. >> We really are. >> [laughter]. >> You're middle, I'm old. >> No, we're both middle old. We're we're in our 50s, dude. We're the. same from here on out. >> Oh, man. >> Until death. >> Thank God you can't hold that 40 thing. over me any longer. >> No, but it was fun while it lasted for. sure. Although now I'm like, oh, I'm.

going through all the same phases Chuck. went through. [laughter]. Right? That I used to make fun of him. for, now they've befallen me. So just. yuck it up, buddy. >> Yuck it up. Uh. you're going to start playing golf in a. few years. It's my prediction. >> [laughter]. >> People are already calling for you. They're like, can we get Josh on the. show? Can he play golf once and just get. him on three putt bogey? And I was like, I mean, I'll do it if he'll do it, but I don't. think you could get Josh on a golf. course. >> It depends if there was no one else on.

>> golf course and it was just you, Adam, and me. >> Yeah, that'd be fun. >> I would probably try that, sure. But. if you are into manatees, I don't blame. you one bit because they are If you look. at them on paper, they are not at all. cute. They're horrifically ugly. >> No. >> But they're not in reality. When you see. a manatee, it all comes together in just. such a certain way that they're. incredibly adorable. Even the fully. grown adults one. And then they are.

exactly in personality and nature. what they look like too, which makes. them even better in my opinion. >> Yeah. Maybe the most huggable animal on. planet Earth. And there are some. huggable animals, but man, those. manatees just give you a look like come. over here, fella, and wrap your arms. around me. >> Right, but don't do that. >> No, don't. You don't want to touch a. manatee. It's not cool. >> You know, here in Florida, there was a. place that was that was opening and they. had released all these billboards and. everything saying. There was a giant picture of a sloth and.

it said yes, you can hold them. And the like the people of Orlando just. rose up and like were like that is not. going to happen. And I guess they. lobbied to get the authorities to go. take those sloths away from the people. that were opening that sloth park and it. ain't happening now. And I'll bet they wish they hadn't put. yes, you can hold them on the billboard. >> Yeah, probably so. >> But I thought that was pretty cool. >> Oh, I love it. They're doing the right. thing. >> So let's get back to manatees, Chuck.

We're going to start with the brass. tacks, which is Cockney rhyming slang. for facts. And there's actually three species still. around today. There's the Amazonian. manatee, the West African manatee, and. the West Indian manatee. And there's two. subspecies of West Indian manatee. And. this has gotten pretty dry already. >> Well, they belong to the animal order. Sirenia and we'll see why in a second. cuz that's pretty interesting actually. And it turns out that there were a lot.

of of uh relatives like that had gone. extinct, uh like various kinds of sea. cows that are related to the manatee or. at least led to the modern manatee. >> Mhm. >> Sadly, a lot of those were hunted into. extinction. Uh but these jokers have been around for. 58 million years. And get this. To me, this may be the. fact of the episode. >> Mhm. >> They share a common a very close common. ancestor with elephants. And at a certain point in time when.

these elephants were hanging out in the. water, I guess one decided they liked. the water so much they stuck around. and stuck around and stuck around and. eventually those arms became flippers, that trunk shrunk down into a cute. little snout. >> Mhm. >> Uh the legs became a tail. And that. became the manatee. So you're looking at. sort of a a weird water elephant. >> Isn't that neat? >> It's the best. >> So they never became fully aquatic. They. still breathe air. They're mammals, so. they still breathe air. Um although. they've definitely adapted to uh life in.

the sea essentially because they can. exhale 90% of the air in their lungs on. exhaling, right? And then that means. they can also fill it up with another. 90% of fresh air and they can hold their. breath for quite a while, but they still. need air to breathe. And they never. really made it that far away from land. They still kind of hug the coastal. areas. Um they're they're never very. far. They're not like ocean-going. normally. Although apparently once in a. while a manatee will be found like up in.

Rhode Island or Massachusetts or. something. And it's because they just. kind of bumbled their way along the. rivers and estuaries all the way up. there. And they usually get air lifted. back down to Florida when they're found. up there because they're not supposed to. be up quite that high. >> Yeah. And when they get back, they go to. their buddy say, you know what's nice? And they go what? And they say, New England. >> Right? >> And they say, tell us all about it. >> And what do they say? >> And they say, well first of all, Rhode. Island, don't get me started.

>> [laughter]. >> Right. They're like, but what about. Delaware? Is Delaware any good? And. they're like, yeah, Delaware gets kind. of a bad rap. >> Delaware is not New England. >> No? >> No. >> Do you know where Delaware is? >> Where is it? Where is it on a map? >> England. >> [laughter]. >> All right, let's just move on. Let's. Let's describe the manatee because like. you said, they're sort of ugly cute. Uh they have grayish-brown uh skin. It. is very wrinkly and tough-looking. They. got some little alfalfa sprout hairs. here and there.

Uh the big long tapered round bodies. tapering down to that paddle-shaped. tail. Those little flippers have three. three or four nails. It's not even that. specific. Some guys are like, I wanted three. Some. guys wanted four. Uh. and then they have that little snout. which has which is whiskered but has. prehensile lips. >> Yeah, let's talk about those. They're. basically like two little hands that the. manatee uses to like basically grasp and. pull seagrass, eelgrass out of the sandy.

bottom that it's growing in, right? And. um that sounds an awful lot like the. trunk of an elephant, doesn't it? >> It sure does. >> They also um the tails that they evolved. with their back legs fused into um. they're actually as slow as they kind of. move along. I think they usually travel. at about 3 to 6 mph on average. >> Perfect. >> But those tails are so powerful that if. you um give them a a. unhealthy jolt, they will zoom off very quickly um at.

top speeds of 15 mph and they can do a. burst of 21 ft per second when they. first get away from you. >> Yeah, and you know what they say after. that? >> What? >> Man, that sucks. [laughter]. I hate doing that. >> Yeah, I'll bet they do. They're like. >> Yeah. Uh those little flippers and you know, we're going to point along some stuff. that we think is especially cute along. the way and this is one of them. Uh I don't know if we will agree on the. to me the single kind of cutest thing.

So we'll see. It's always fun to see if. those align. Uh but those little. flippers, they're obviously kind of. steering themselves. They're paddling. with that tail but they also use that. little flipper to hold seagrass. They'll. tuck it under their little flipper cuz. they're like, I might want a little. snack along the way. >> [clears throat]. >> Isn't that cute? >> Oh, I love it. >> They might as well be carrying like. their little pencil case on the way to. school or something. [laughter]. >> Totally. >> Um and so Michelle Konstantinovsky from. How Stuff Works was one of our sources. for this episode and she is a huge.

manatee fan. Um and she found I think a. mention from Smithsonian that referred. to manatees as roly-poly herbivores. >> Mhm. >> I also saw floaty potatoes. [laughter]. But they both kind of get across. These. things are big lumps that just like to. go along and and eat stuff. And. big is definitely like a good way to um. to describe them. I think when they're. born, they're something like 4 ft long. and 60 to 70 lbs when they're born.

>> That's a puppy as Jerry would say. >> That's a big baby. >> I think they're actually called calves. Uh fully grown, about 8 to 1,200 lbs on. average and about 10 ft long, but the. biggest daddies uh can be up to 13 ft. long and weigh 3,500 lbs. >> Right. >> Which is huge. Uh they live in that um. brackish water. Uh they also like some. fresh water as we'll see cuz there's. some other cute stuff coming your way in. terms of that. Uh and like, you know, they'll they go. into rivers sometimes. Uh like kind of.

brackish rivers, coastal rivers. >> Mhm. >> Uh they love the stuff near the shore. because that's where all that delicious. seagrass and eelgrass is. And so they. just feed along the coastlines where. that seagrass is. Uh and they want the. deep water access. Although as you said, they don't hang out there, but if they. need to get out of dodge, they want to. be able to go to deeper waters quickly. >> Exactly, right? So they know what's. going on. They know where to go, but for. the most part, they don't really have to. evacuate an area very quickly very often.

as we'll see. Um just a little taste of what's to. come. >> Yeah. >> They're also solitary. They're. considered solitary animals, but they. very frequently congregate. um to like basically graze together. Um they'll hang out. And then when they. move together, like say they're grazing. together and they're moving from one. place to another, they um keep in a. single file, which I find super cute. they don't have any territory and. they're not territorial. They just kind. of go wherever the food is.

>> Yeah. >> And um everybody loves them. The thing. is as. big as they are, they don't have. blubber. You might think they're just like fat. No, they're beefy hosses, essentially is. what they are. And that means that they. can't stay warm in very cold water, so. they have to um find warm water in the. winter months. >> Yeah, anything below 68° they can be in. it for a short time, but they're not. into it at all. >> Mhm. >> Uh so they kind of hang around the Gulf.

of Mexico and peninsular Florida. um where it's nice and warm. They also. love those natural warm springs that you. can find. >> Mhm. >> in Florida. There's one that's very. popular with the manatees called Blue. Spring State Park that has lovely water. that stays about 72° uh into the winter. And so they will congregate there and. they're reviewing platforms and people. will stand around and gawk and talk. about how cute they are. Uh the other. interesting thing they'll do for warmth.

is uh where they're generating power, like at where the outfalls are for power. plants, the water is a little warmer. there, so they can hang out there. sometimes. >> Yeah, I find that pretty cool, too. Uh I. think the manatees you're going to find. in Florida. So remember the Florida. manatee is a subspecies of the West. Indian manatee. And this basically who. we're going to focus on. >> Yeah. >> But the the Florida manatee itself, that. subspecies, is native to Florida and. they've been there for probably around. 12,000 years. I think that they moved. from the Caribbean to Florida about.

12,000 years ago after the last ice age. is what they figured from genetic. testing. >> [clears throat]. >> Yeah, but they think they've been, you. know, except for the ice ages, have been. around Florida for over a million years. total. >> Right. Yeah. >> Impressive. >> The other subspecies of West Indian that. is the close, close relative, it may be. even the same but just with a different. range. as the Florida manatee, is the Antillean. or Caribbean manatee, which I think we. already mentioned.

They're found. throughout the Caribbean and along the. coast of the Gulf of America. We. found that, Chuck, didn't we, on the. Fish and Wildlife Service site. >> Yeah. >> It was the first time I've run across it. in the wild, but that's a US government. website and they referred to the Gulf of. Mexico as the Gulf of America with a. totally straight face. >> Yeah, they did and I texted you and. said, I'm not going to tell you things I. said, but.

we're going to call it the Gulf of. Mexico. So that's where they hang out. They are distributed from like northern. Mexico all the way down to the. northeastern coast of Brazil. and I think you mentioned the Caribbean. and they they they get around. Like you. said, they go where the food is. So they. they may travel. not much sometimes. They may travel. hundreds of miles in a year if they need. to get food. >> Yeah, they find themselves in Rhode. Island and say, oh dear, oh my. >> Yeah. >> [laughter].

>> So you know that Christopher Columbus. cat? >> Uh-huh. >> He is credited for documenting the first. sighting of a European of a manatee, but he was a dipstick and he recorded. them as seeing three mermaids. Did you. know that? >> Well, so is that what he was talking. about? Like do we know that he was. talking about manatees? >> No, he was talking about mermaids and. they're like this is a manatee. Yeah. >> no, that's what I mean though, but have. we Is it kind of verified that those. were one and the same to him?

>> That seems to be the general consensus. is that that's what he was talking. about. >> All right, I believe it, I guess. >> Because he said that the the mermaids. were quote not half as beautiful as they. are painted. >> Well, yeah and you know, when I. mentioned earlier to to put a pin in the. the order that is. uh Sirenia, um that's from the Greek sirens in Greek. mythology and the sirens initially were. bird women, but then eventually were. mermaids. So, I guess that's where dumb. dumb Christopher Columbus thought they.

were mermaids. >> So, did you know that siren or some. version of it means mermaid in a bunch. of different languages? Like that aren't at all related, like. Tagalog and Catalan and Catalan and. Croatian. all basically use some version of siren. as mermaid. >> Yeah, I didn't know that until this. >> Me either, Chuck. You want to take a. break? >> Yeah. >> Well, what were you going to say about. that fact? >> I was 2 years old. >> Okay.

Now, do you want to take a break? >> Sure. No, let's keep going. >> Oh, okay. >> No, I'm kidding. We'll take that break. and we'll gaze at pictures of manatees. and be back in a minute. [music]. [music]. [music]. [music].

All right, we're back everybody. Josh. mentioned that they are herbivores. Well, we mentioned the eight seagrass, but they are strictly herbivores. Uh they love that sweet sweet seagrass. And um you know, in the House of Forks. article, they they point out that. there's probably some, you know, little. bits of krill and other shrimpy things. that might get in their mouth, but they're probably like, I don't want. that in my mouth. I just want that sweet. seagrass. Uh and I want to spend 8 hours of my day. eating that stuff, maybe up to 10% of my.

body weight cuz that's how I roll. >> Yeah, and the reason they have to eat so. much is because they very very slowly. metabolize. They're like. naturally on GLP-1 or something like. that. >> [laughter]. >> Exactly. >> That actually there's a purpose for. that. It's an adaptation. It helps the. manatee from overheating in very warm. waters, but unfortunately, natural. selection giveth and natural selection. taketh away because that means that they. can't easily burn enough energy to warm.

themselves up in cold water, which is. why they have to go seek out things like. power plant outfalls in the winter. months so they don't freeze to death. >> Yeah, totally. Uh here's another kind of. fun fact. They, you know, when you're. eating all that seagrass, you're going. to be getting sand in there too, and. that's going to wear their teeth down. And so one adaptation that they have is. they have a tooth replacement like we. do. Um those molars are continually. replaced throughout their life. Uh they. just grind down from that sand and. eventually will fall out, and there's.

another molar emerging right behind it. >> Yeah, do you know what other animal does. that? >> Humans? >> Elephants. >> Oh, okay. >> We don't replace new teeth. I mean, we. do with like crowns and stuff like that. >> Well, I mean, we lose our baby teeth and. get our molars in. And yeah. >> I got you. I got you. I got another fact. about their teeth too, Chuck. >> Wait, do you still have all your baby. teeth? >> [laughter]. >> Yes. >> What's your What's your fact? >> Um they are incapable of using their.

teeth to attack. They're set too far. back in their mouth. So the best a. manatee could do is gum you. >> Yeah. >> And um they wouldn't even do that. They. essentially seem to be incapable of. aggressive behavior. They just don't do. it. Do you know like with dolphins? Dolphins can get kind of uh assaulty. sexually sometimes. >> [laughter]. >> Yeah. >> can get very aggressive. >> Uh-huh. >> No one has ever seen or documented a. manatee getting aggressive in any way,

shape, or form, not just with people, but with other animals too. It's pretty. cool. >> Yeah, that's super cool. Uh and you. know, earlier I mentioned there's a. little um cute thing that they do with. the freshwater, their their desire for. freshwater. >> Mhm. >> Uh. they will find that freshwater wherever. it is. Sometimes it's at the mouth of a. river they'll hang out. Uh sometimes they will lie on their back. when it rains and just open their big. maw and drink that way. And sometimes, and imagine your a very lucky uh boat.

cleaner, if you're hanging out cleaning. your boat at a dock and you throw that. hose down on the on the dock, you should. turn it off. But if you're just letting. it run, you might find a manatee down. there just lapping it up. >> Yes. So you me and I were very very. lucky for years. We lived on the Indian. River Lagoon and there was a dock that. belonged to the condo and you could go. down there and watch manatees drinking. hose water a lot of the time. >> That's so cool, man. >> It was very cool to see [laughter] for.

sure. >> What a thing to do every evening. >> Yeah. It's super cute. as you can imagine, right? Uh we also. learned that manatee po- poop floats. >> Oh, okay. >> [laughter]. >> And then speaking of floating too, so. manatees would conceivably be too. buoyant, but they have very dense bones. that keep them from just floating all. the time. But they do need to come up. for breaths and then go back down and. they actually use their lungs for that, I believe. >> Yeah, this was the one. This is what I.

think the cutest visual there is is when. manatees are sleeping, they're breathing and they're just. bobbing up and down in the water. while they're sleeping because their. lungs are filling up and then expelling. air. >> Aren't they cute? >> Oh my god. Can't take it. >> So now we're going to turn the page for. a moment. >> [laughter]. >> Not so cute. >> There is a a thing about manatees that. you may not know. A lot of people don't. know. And um it can be really disturbing.

to witness. And that is the mating. process of manatees. Because even though manatees are um. considered solitary animals, when they. mate, they uh form what are called mating. herds and it is a mating free for all. that happens. >> [snorts]. >> Yeah. I mean this article describes them. as indiscriminate breeders and that is a. nice way to say what's happening here. Uh, they are obviously not monogamous.

They don't even pair up to mate. Uh, there is a single female manatee. that gets in heat and then like. up to 12 male manatees that are all. following closely behind like come on, come on, come on. You like me? You like. me? And it it turns into just a. a just a big. sex for all basically uh, in shallow. waters where people can stand around and. like call the cops because they think. something's wrong. Like that literally. happens.

>> Yeah, in 2023 um, the cops, the. sheriff's office from Clearwater St. Pete uh, Pinellas County. they had to post something asking people. to stop calling them to report manatees. in distress that the manatees were. actually mating and that's what they. were supposed to be doing. But um, yeah. And it it it's very it's. it's very disturbing to see. [laughter]. It's really you can't believe what. you're seeing if you see manatees, you. know, act the way manatees act, you. know, and then you kind of realize like.

oh my god, they're really freaky when. they mate. >> Did you and Yumi see this stuff at your. dock? >> We went to another dock. There was an. even better place that we could drive to. and it was a great place to see manatees. and one of the times we went, we. witnessed a mating herd and like they. were just rolling and splashing all. around the water. It was like um, you know those balls of snakes like when. snakes mate? >> Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. >> It was like that but with manatees. basically. >> Oh man. >> It was something else. >> I guess if you don't know and you're.

used to them just gently floating. around, you would definitely be like. something is. wrong here. [laughter]. Man. >> Oh man. So that was it though. That's their only. vice is the mating ritual. After that. they go right back to being super cute. and adorable again, right? >> Hey, good for them. >> Yeah, more power to them, right? >> That's that's how it's done in manatee. world. >> What else is done in manatee is a very. loving, nurturing mother-calf. relationship, which is adorable. Like,

if you're like, manatees, whatever, you guys still haven't won me. over yet, go look up videos of mother. manatees interacting with their baby. calves, and that will get you, no matter. who you are. >> Like hugging and kissing their little. babies. Uh they just ate for about 12 to 14. months, mama's do. Almost always a. single calf, but occasionally in rare. cases there have been twins. And this can happen anytime a year, although they seem to. give birth more in the spring and.

summer. >> Mhm. >> And they like to go to a quiet little. place to give birth. I know we mentioned about 4 ft long and. about 60 to 70 lbs for a calf. And. they can be born apparently either head. or tail first. We don't have a lot of. like direct documentation, but they have. seen a few born in I guess captivity. And they do know that the newborn calf. can swim to the surface on its own right. away. And also vocalize pretty soon after. birth as well and like clearly like.

communicating with mom. >> Yeah, the little baby calf manatees. have a squeak that they use to pester. their mom until she lets them nurse. >> Yeah. >> And they start nursing like within a few. hours after birth. And they nurse. underwater. The manatee mom's teats are. right behind her flippers. And she just hangs around and lets the. baby nurse. And I think they start. eating plants a few weeks later. And one of the things that gets me is. that the manatee calf will stay with.

their mom for potentially two years. >> Yeah. >> But they can find and eat food on their. own by the end of year one. They just. stick around and and are raised and. nurtured for another year after that. Isn't that adorable? >> It's just the best. Earlier too you mentioned that they swim. in single file lines. That is true in. all cases except little baby. Cuz baby sticks next to mama. And swims parallel uh behind her little. flipper and they think that this is you.

know so they can communicate more. effectively. >> Or the babies like that's where the teat. is and I like to keep it in close. proximity, right? >> Yeah, I got to see that thing. >> So I I said that manatees do not behave. aggressively. Even if you approach a. manatee and her calf. she's not going to come at you. What. what she'll do at first is to swim. between you and the calf, right? Like. I'm I'm trying to send you a signal here. like please [laughter] back off. >> Very nice message. >> And if you keep coming, especially if.

you like are hunchbacked and you have. claws and are just kind of coming at. them like that, she and she'll squeak to. the manatee and they will both just take. off very quickly away from you. That's. the most that they do when they're. threatened. They don't they don't attack. at all. >> Yeah, it's just now occurring to me that. these are the most Canadian sea mammals. that that exist. >> That's right. They may even be drifting into like. Swede territory. >> Maybe or. maybe Sconnies cuz buddy.

I just went to the Packers game in Green. Bay at the legendary Lambeau Field and I. know I know we did our show in Madison. This was like a bucket list trip for me. >> Oh cool. >> Um it was almost like it was uh faked. for like the Truman Show. I've never. been around a a kinder, more hospitable. and I'm from the South. I'm used to. Southern hospitality. This puts Southern. hospitality to shame how kind and sweet. everybody was. >> That's pretty cool. >> It was off the charts. >> I remember in our Ed Gein episode we we.

found that he used to be like I'm really. sorry about this when he was murdering. somebody or stealing their corpse from. the grave. Wisconsin. >> Why you got to do that? >> Um that's great. Who won? >> Uh well the Packers won. The Packers. were were terrible early in their first. two games and I was just like hey I. don't care. I'm going to go and have a. good time and I feel I felt really bad. for the Packers fans cuz the Packers. whipped them 35 to I think 13 or 14. maybe. >> Hm that is pretty bad for an NFL game, huh? >> Yeah, and again they were just so nice.

It was. I I kind of wanted the Packers to win. while I was here. And and it was their. first. It was their first home game, and. like a guy literally on the plane, like. people were Their version of talking. smack was this guy, this old feller. said, "Oh, I just hope nobody gets. hurt.". >> [laughter]. >> Wow. >> Where am I? >> That's amazing. >> Yeah, so anyway, those are the manatees. >> The Packers fans are the manatees of the. NFL? >> For sure. >> You know who wouldn't have felt bad for. the Packers and would have been happy.

that they lost? Steelers fans. >> Mm, yeah. Well, anyone in their division. Bears. fans for sure. >> So uh Wow, that just really got. I I basically stepped in something I. couldn't finish. [laughter]. >> Just wipe it off your shoe. Wipe the the. NFL off your shoe. You'll be fine. >> So um we should probably regroup and. re-gather ourselves. and take a break and come back and shake. off the NFL stuff or get it off of my. shoe like you said.

>> Yeah, and everybody hang tight cuz we're. going to talk when we come back about. the personality of the manatee. And if. you thought they were nice before, just. wait. >> [music]. [music]. >> Learning stuff [music and singing]. from Joshua. and Charles. Stuff [music] you should know.

>> All right, Chuck. We promised to talk. about manatee personalities, and I think. we've kind of gotten across that they're. pretty mellow. They're very sweet and. kind and gentle. And yes, I'm anthropomorphizing. You're. going to have to deal with that. I'm. sorry. >> Yeah. >> They have no natural predators. They've been endemic, native to Florida. for a million year Sorry, for at least. 12,000 years, like the current manatee. population there. So they're not an invasive species. They're not new. And they're not apex predators. And so.

for a species to not have any predator. under those circumstances is. very very rare. I couldn't find another. example of it, to be honest. They get. along with everybody. Everybody in their. habitat and ecosystem loves the manatee. >> Yeah. they have the right of way. If. there's an alligator in the way, they. will just bump the alligator. and the alligator will be like, sure. buddy, you go right on ahead. >> Yep. >> Because I think the general idea down.

there is they've all. got together without the manatees and. had a meeting. and said, we're not going to eat them, right? And. everyone said, no no no, of course not. What are we, animals? >> Right. [laughter]. Very nice. I just imagine all the animals at that. meeting wearing gaucho hats with those. little fabric balls hanging around the. brim. >> [gasps]. >> I'm surprised that Disney has not done a. manatee thing yet. >> I am too, now that you mention it. >> Yeah. >> Gosh. >> Get on it, Disney.

>> So you said that manatees will spend. like 8 hours eating a day. That actually. leaves them with a decent amount of free. time and they just kind of hang out. sometimes with other manatees. They just. kind of lay around kind of floaty. Um they'll sleep a lot, but like they're. they live the life that you would think. a manatee would live just looking at. them. Like they fulfill every they. fulfill all of your manatee fantasies. [laughter]. when you look into them, it all checks. out. >> Yeah, I think manatee fantasies is.

definitely a 70s album title. >> [laughter]. >> That's yacht rock through and through. >> Yeah, for sure. Uh but because they have. no predators, they're super curious. because they're like nothing's going to. eat me, so let's check everything out. And so they'll swim up to your kayak, they'll swim up to your uh small boat. Uh they'll swim up to you if you're. swimming along sometimes or scuba. diving. >> In Florida, manatee swims up to you. >> [laughter]. >> Uh here's the deal though. Federal. guidelines now say. if you're diving and snorkeling down.

there, if a if a manatee comes up to you. and you don't approach it, you can touch it with open hand if you. want, which is not something that any. endangered or even threatened species. like is allowed. And there are. definitely a lot of uh conservationists. and marine biologists that are like, no, don't like don't tell people that. Like. just don't touch the manatees. Don't. don't do it. >> Yeah. It's there's a lot of reasons why, but. the big one is because they can very.

quickly become habituated to people, very comfortable around you. If you feed. them or they get used to people feeding. them, they are going to become. unnaturally habituated. And and I've. seen that any level of habituation is. considered unnatural and that. um manatees that that aren't used to. people will like if they see people on a. beach that they're near, they'll take. off. Like they get spooked, right? So. a a manatee interacting with a person is. not what manatees normally do. Uh they're just naturally curious and.

they don't have predators, so they. haven't developed like a sense of fear. that keeps other animals at bay. And you. as the human are have to be the the. bigger person here and just keep clear. As much as you want to like hug that. manatee, that manatee would probably let. you, uh do not do that. It's also. dangerous. Like the manatee could. accidentally kill you with this 1,300 lb. girth, right? Or 3,500 lb girth, 13 ft.

long body. Um so it's it's just you. don't want to do that. You can also pass. diseases to the manatee and kill them. So don't. Just be like an upstanding. human and look at them, you know, nearby, but don't go touch them. >> Yeah, I totally agree. Uh another sort. of controversy in 2017. good news is they were populations were. showing a pretty good increase and like. a steady one. And so they downgraded. them from endangered to threatened. But.

this is, you know, the Save the Manatee. Club who we're going to talk about. I. mean, they're kind of the go-to if you. want to support manatees is the Save the. Manatee Club. >> Yeah. >> But they came out and they were like, this is a quote. flagrantly inexcusable. They're like, just don't do it. Like, we're not there yet. People get the. wrong idea and all of a sudden. the interests are for humans and then. the voters will quit thinking about it. as much. Like, just keep them. on the endangered list, please. >> Also it. puts development interests, humans like.

trying to make money developing areas. that directly affect the habitats of. manatees. They're like legally now they. they come well before the manatees. rights or considerations, right? So it. was a probably a pretty bad move back in. 2017. And the reason it became even more clear. it was a bad move was that in 2021. there was a what the Fish and Wildlife. called an unusual mortality event.

>> Yeah. >> where 1,255 manatees died of starvation. along the East Coast. in just one section of Florida and that. made up probably maybe an eighth of the. entire population of Florida manatees. and they still weren't moved back to the. endangered list. They were kept on the. threatened list, which was just stupid. >> Yeah, it's it's a brutal number to. to die so quickly. It's very very sad to.

hear about. This happened because they. were. making up for food loss. and the reason there's food loss is. because humans and the activities of. humans are what's killing manatees. I. think they. could live up to 60 years. >> Right. >> in the wild, but it looks like they. average about 10 years. because of people. One way people kill them is with their. boats. like striking a manatee either with the. front of your boat can be blunt force.

trauma or cutting them up with your. propeller is a common way that manatees. die and then the 1,255 like I said were. making up for food loss and eating toxic. algae. uh which killed them because uh their. sea grass is dying because of uh. fertilizer runoff. >> Uh. yeah. So there's a lot of agriculture. and a lot of lawn care that goes on in. the interior of Florida. And Florida is. essentially like a ridge, very very flat. ridge, but the the water runs from the.

middle of Florida to the coasts, right? And it carries a lot of fertilizer. runoff, a lot of nitrogen. We've talked. about algae blooms before. I think. probably largely in our Everglades. episode. >> Uh-huh. >> That happens where manatees hang out and. eat too. And when there's an algae. bloom, uh it sucks up all of the oxygen. from the water and kills off all of the. plant life, or it sucks up all the. carbon dioxide, one of the two, uh and kills off a lot of the plant. life. And then it also turns to muck,

which makes the water murkier than it. should be, which keeps sunlight from. reaching the remaining plants and kills. off even more plants. And so the algae. blooms alone have had a huge huge impact. on manatee habitats uh in the last like. several decades, last few decades. It's. happened very very quick essentially. >> Yeah, and you know, did you said you. guys lived on the Indian River? Is that. right? >> Yeah, the lagoon. >> Well, I mean, you should take this part even though.

you were just talking because this is. about the Indian River Lagoon and you. live there, so you should tell that. story. >> So what what I was just talking about. with the algae blooms, the Indian River. Lagoon is a major um manatee habitat. It's very very long. I can't remember. how long it is, but it's a inland. brackish coastal waterway. There's a. little spit of land between it and the. Atlantic Ocean and then the Florida. mainland starts on the other side of the. lagoon, right? And just the stuff that flows into it is.

mind-boggling. Like there's like treated. sewage gets put into it, but a lot of. these towns sewage systems can get. disrupted or whatever. And so untreated. sewage leaks into it very frequently. The space industry Cape Canaveral is on. the Indian River Lagoon. So all that jet. fuel and god knows what else is in the. Indian River too. And then all of the. algae blooms that happen every year the. the Indian River turns reliably into it. like just brown stinking mess. It's it's.

a problem, right? And it it just. aesthetically it's a problem in and of. itself, but the impact it's had on the. manatees has been astounding. Um one one thing I saw was that 90% of. the seagrass in the Indian River Lagoon. has been lost in just like the last 15. to 20 years. Um and that's that's one of the places. where that unusual mortality event. happened in 2021 where 1,255 manatees.

starved to death. And what's even more. heartbreaking it's never been like this. when I saw it Chuck, but as recently as. the '60s it was just like this aquatic. paradise, right? >> Yeah, apparently you could see like as. you know in 10 ft of water it was just. crystal clear and you could see the the. bottom. Uh so I'm I'm sure it's like. super sad to see that stuff in person, you know? >> It is, but I I it is for sure. But it's. also very cool like just to see so many. bottlenose dolphins just swimming around.

and manatees and stuff. It's it's still. a very wondrous place. And the the. die off really served as a wake up call. for the state. that was like okay we actually need to. start taking this much more seriously. And I saw that in some places some of. the seagrass has come back as much as. 75%. >> That's good. >> Yeah, and we're talking 5 years that. kind of a rebound. So. all it's all it takes is the. state government actually doing. something about it. They've never done.

anything about it up to that point and. now that they're starting to and I still. have a friend there named Wesley who. actually listens to the podcast. and I asked him like hey is this is it. coming back? And um he said that he's read the same. stuff, but he can't say directly that. he's noticed you know anything. remarkable, but he did say I was on the. dock the other day. I saw a really big. one swim by. It was amazing. >> Ugh. >> And also he's in Santorini, Greece right. now. >> He is? >> Mhm. >> Is that where he saw the manatee? >> No. No, he was talking about at home in.

the Indian River Lagoon. >> Oh, I got you. Okay. >> Thanks for indulging me that, Chuck. It. was nice to kind of reminisce about. hanging out with manatees there. >> Yeah, I mean. from what I gather like Florida. obviously there's like. the um. it seems like the people of Florida care. about the. ecological systems there and it's being. wrecked in a lot of cases by. like as usual development and the. almighty dollar, but.

>> Yeah. >> from what I can tell like the the folks. in Florida really really. love all that stuff and care about it. >> Yeah, but I mean they also love a. thriving economy and tourist industry. too. So it is a balance, but yes, you're. right. It does seem like people care and. live off the land or live in close. proximity to land more than say like um. >> Name a state. Any state. Delaware. >> Delaware. [laughter] Thank you. >> All right. So we mentioned the Save the. Manatees Club. >> Any state. Just do it.

>> If you [laughter] if you want to support. manatees, Save the Manatees Club is the. place to do it. It was founded 1981 by. none other. than the cheeseburger in paradise. himself, Jimmy Buffett. >> Yeah. >> And former Florida senator and governor. Bob Graham. And you can sponsor a. manatee. And Charity Navigator gives them rave. reviews there. You can get a four out of. four rating and 85% of their funds go. directly to programs. So I am going to we're going to adopt a. manatee as a family for sure.

>> That's awesome. Same. I now I feel ashamed that I haven't ever. before. >> No, there's it's never too late. >> Also if you are a boater and you live in. Florida and you there's a lot of laws. and rules and regulations you can. observe to keep safe and keep from. propeller strikes, which is another one. that kills off a lot of manatees. In. fact, propeller strikes happen so much, Chuck, some manatee researchers. track individual manatees based on the. unique scar patterns on their backs from.

getting hit by propellers. >> Ugh. >> So boaters actually can do a lot to help. manatees as well. >> Yeah. >> Um and one thing you can do is if you. ever see a manatee that's in distress or. not mating, but like actually in. distress, or you see a calf by itself or. one with fresh wounds or something like. that, you can report them to Florida. Fish and Wildlife. Um if you are in the. Gulf of Mexico though, be sure to call. it the Gulf of America or they won't. know what you're talking about.

>> And slow it down. Be cool. If you're in. shallow waters, just just take it easy. and keep your eyes peeled. I'm sure a. lot of the boaters are aware of this and. [music] do the right thing, but uh all. all boaters should. >> Yep. Uh agreed, Chuck. And um I think I think. that brought up listener mail, don't. you? >> That's right. I promised to swear words. in this one. uh because Gray Carroll has a filthy. mouth. And. the email starts as this. Hey guys, Gray.

Carroll here. I've been a listener for a few years. now. Uh you're really the only podcast. that I enjoy listening to actually. I. just finished A Good Walk Ruined colon. The History of Golf. Enjoyed this. episode quite a bit as I am myself a. weekend warrior golfer. Uh you guys. touched on the origin of how golf got. the name golf. And I just want to let. you guys know that they called it golf. uh because the word. were already taken. Or at least this is. what I tell myself while I shank my. irons or try to sink a third putt for. bogey. [music]. Uh anyway, you guys are awesome. I love.

how you approach the topics you talk. about. I look forward to the new. episodes every week. I've learned a lot. of new things from you guys and look. forward to many more years of stuff you. should know. Thank you, Gray Carroll. >> That was a great one. Thanks, Gray. Gray? >> Gray. >> Gray. Um that's what I thought. That was a. good one, Gray. And Gray referenced. essentially the name of your podcast, Chuck, and I have no idea what the name. of your podcast means. [laughter]. >> Uh, Three Putt Bogey. And we called it. Three Putt Bogey cuz that's kind of one. of the worst things that can happen.

[laughter] on a hole is when you got a. good hole going and you're on the green. with a chance to like make birdie and. you miss that putt and then you're like, well, I can still make par and you miss. that putt and you sank that three putt. for bogey and then you just. you say the words that Gray said and you. walk to the next hole because every new. hole is a new start. >> Got it. Thanks for explaining that. It's. a great title. I liked it before but. just cuz of how it sounded and looked. >> Yeah. >> Uh, if you want to go get Chuck and. Adam's new uh podcast, it's called Three.

Putt Bogey and you can get it anywhere. you find podcasts because it's big time. And uh in the meantime while you're. listening to Three Putt Bogey too, you. can send us an email and tell us how. much you like Three Putt Bogey. Chuck, is there like an email people can email. for Three Putt Bogey? >> Uh, yeah. You can email Three Putt Bogey. Podcast and also follow on Instagram at. Three Putt Bogey Podcast and that's the. number three. >> Very nice. Uh, and you can email us at. Stuff You Should Know as always at.

stuffpodcast@iheartradio.com. >> [music]. >> Stuff You Should Know is a production of. iHeart Radio. For more podcasts from. iHeart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio. app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you. listen to your favorite shows.