Gully, a young manatee, is recovering after being discovered trapped in a small pond a mile and a half from open water, CBS12 News reported.
Two-year-old Gully was malnourished and stuck in a pond near Big Bend Wildlife Management Area in Dixie County, Florida. His rescuers suspect flooding and storm surge from Hurricane Helene stranded him there.
“Manatees that are displaced by storm surge waters often remain in unusual locations with limited food sources after the surge recedes,” ZooTampa at Lowry Park wrote in a Facebook post.
Although underweight due to his ordeal, Gully still weighed 500 pounds, so it took some coordination to safely remove him from the water. ZooTampa at Lowry Park, Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission, the University of Florida, and Clearwater Aquarium worked together, using a giant net to pull him out of the water. After placing him on a tarp and ensuring he was hydrated, the team put him in a truck to be assessed at the Manatee Critical Care Center 150 miles away.
“He’s being tube-fed twice a day, and he’s starting to show some interest in food,” Sandra Morrison, ZooTampa at Lowry Park’s director of communications, told FOX Weather. “He’s doing better.”
Gully has scars, as many manatees do, but he’s expected to recover from this incident and be returned to wild. Only about 4% of adult manatees are free of scars from being hit by boats, canoes, and other watercraft, according to the Fish and Wildlife Research Institute. It’s important to remember not to attempt to approach manatees, or other sensitive wildlife, while enjoying the great outdoors.
Lady Freethinker applauds all the organizations that collaborated to save Gully to bring him to a place where he can recover and regain his strength. In the aftermath of natural disasters, it’s encouraging to see people coming together to help animals in need like Gully.
