Mystery mammal spotted in Wolf River Harbor

Oct 23, 2006 05:26 PM CDT

Memphis Police are trying to identify a mysterious aquatic animal, resembling a manatee, that has been spotted along Mud Island in the Mississippi River.

Action News 5 is working with local zoo officials to identify the animal. We will post more information about the animal as it becomes available.

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Theres a video on the site and it sure appears to be a manatee to me....

Source: http://www.wmctv.com/Global/story.asp?S=5577895

Memphis manatee found dead

The Associated Press


MEMPHIS — A manatee that traveled 720 miles up the Mississippi River to Memphis in October and eluded his would-be rescuers was found dead today on the banks of a lake, police said.

Police spokesman Sgt. Vince Higgins said the manatee was discovered around 1:30 p.m. CDT at Lake McKellar, a slackwater lake off the Mississippi River south of Memphis.

"We believe it to be the same one sighted a few weeks ago," Higgins said.

The manatee was first spotted in October in the Wolf River harbor just north of the densely populated downtown area. But the animal disappeared a few days later and wasn't seen again until its body was found today.

Higgins said authorities waiting for a team from SeaWorld in Orlando, Fla., to arrive and examine the animal.

"They're going to take it back and find out what caused the death," Higgins said.

Manatees, an endangered species, generally prefer warm coastal waters ranging from Alabama to South Carolina, although there were sightings this August along the Eastern coast up to Rhode Island.

In winter months, they usually stay in coastal waters of Florida, often congregating near the warm-water discharges of power plants.

Did anyone reading this get to see the Tennessee manatee?