November is....

    MANATEE AWARENESS MONTH

Manatees are marine mammals.  Have you ever wondered to which land mammal the manatee is most closely related? The tips of the flippers are a good hint.  Also think about how the manatee moves its large lips to grab things.  They are rather slow moving and have a similar color to their relative.  Their relatives are HUGE and can lift very heavy objects with their trunks.  Yep your right, they are closely related to the elephant. 

Manatees are found in shallow warm salt and fresh water.   They are found in coast areas of southeastern United States down to Brazil, in the Amazon Basin and off the coast and in the rivers of Western Africa.  Their populations are on the decline as they are slow moving and so are easily hunted and injured by high speed boats. 

The manatee are prodigious herbivores which consume algae and water grasses.  A manatee can eat one tenth of its body weight in one day.  This consumption of a massive amount of hard to digest material causes the manatee to produce a lot of gas which helps give the manatee extra boyance which mitigate the exceptionally dense bones of the manatee. 

For more fun facts about the manatee visit:

http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/manatee/
http://www.defenders.org/florida-manatee/basic-facts
http://www.floridawildlifeviewing.com/florida_animals_wildlife/manatees-elephants.htm
https://www.fws.gov/northflorida/manatee/manatees.htm
http://cincinnatizoo.org/blog/animals/florida-manatee/