{"id":839201,"date":"2026-09-07T06:14:18","date_gmt":"2026-09-07T06:14:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/839201\/"},"modified":"2026-09-07T06:14:18","modified_gmt":"2026-09-07T06:14:18","slug":"manatees-confirmed-mating-in-mississippi-waters-for-first-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/839201\/","title":{"rendered":"Manatees confirmed mating in Mississippi waters for first time"},"content":{"rendered":"

DIAMONDHEAD, Miss. (WLOX) \u2014 Researchers have documented for the first time that manatees are living and mating in Mississippi waters, as more boaters head out on the Mississippi Sound for Labor Day weekend.<\/p>\n

\"ResearchersResearchers have documented for the first time that manatees are living and mating in Mississippi waters, as more boaters head out on the Mississippi Sound for Labor Day weekend.(wlox)Drone captures mating manatees<\/p>\n

In September 2024, Dr. Holley Muraco\u2019s team was flying a drone over marsh vegetation at Grand Bay NERR when they spotted three manatees.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is actually not uncommon to actually see manatees here in Mississippi. The issue is that our water is just not very clear,\u201d said Dr. Holley Muraco of Coastal One Health.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat was even neater and cooler is that they were actually mating. And so this was the first time that we have proof that manatees are not only in our waters, but they\u2019re actually using it for reproduction,\u201d Muraco said.<\/p>\n

\"InIn September 2024, Dr. Holley Muraco\u2019s team was flying a drone over marsh vegetation at Grand Bay NERR when they spotted three manatees.(wlox)New manatees identified<\/p>\n

After analyzing the animals\u2019 unique markings and scars, researchers made another discovery.<\/p>\n

\u201cNone of those manatees are in any photo ID catalog. Not in Florida, not in Alabama. We have three new identified manatees that are here in Mississippi. Potentially animals that are always trying to utilize this particular waterway,\u201d Muraco said.<\/p>\n

\"AfterAfter analyzing the animals\u2019 unique markings and scars, researchers made another discovery.(wlox)<\/p>\n

Researchers now want to know how much these animals use Mississippi waters including where the manatees find warm water refuges.<\/p>\n

Muraco said her team works with the Dauphin Island Sea Lab\u2019s Manatee Sighting Network to collect sighting data across the northern Gulf.<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone who\u2019s out on the water can help this science and we really appreciate you reporting your sightings,\u201d Muraco said.<\/p>\n

\"NoNo one in Mississippi is currently permitted to specifically target manatees for research, so Muraco works with the Dauphin Island Sea Lab in Alabama, which collects sightings from across the northern Gulf.(wlox)What boaters should look for<\/p>\n

Muraco said manatees often linger near marinas or shallow estuaries, looking for vegetation.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey, as they\u2019re moving, will actually leave a circular pattern with their tail. So if you are looking ahead and you see these strange circular patterns that aren\u2019t being made by a fish, you might be in an area where a manatee is,\u201d Muraco said.<\/p>\n

\"ResearchersResearchers ask boaters to report sightings during Labor Day weekend(wlox)<\/p>\n

Officials say boaters can help keep manatees safe by slowing down and having someone on board watching the water. Sightings can be reported to the Dauphin Island Sea Lab\u2019s Manatee Sighting Network at 1-866-493-5803. If a manatee appears distressed or injured, callers can press \u201c1\u201d to be connected to an on-call responder available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.<\/p>\n

\"OfficialsOfficials say boaters can help keep manatees safe by slowing down and having someone on board watching the water.(wlox)<\/p>\n

Sightings can also be reported to U.S. Fish & Wildlife at 601-965-4900, the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources at 601-576-6046, or the Institute for Marine Mammal Studies at 1-888-787-3657.<\/p>\n

The Manatee Sighting Network has documented more than 8,000 sightings across the northern Gulf since 2007. Muraco is hoping to expand research in Mississippi, including studying possible warm water refuges at Grand Bay and near power plants along the Coast.<\/p>\n

See a spelling or grammar error in this story? Report it to our team HERE<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Copyright 2026 WLOX. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"DIAMONDHEAD, Miss. (WLOX) \u2014 Researchers have documented for the first time that manatees are living and mating in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":839202,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[355391,355393,355390,355389,355392,79,201],"class_list":["post-839201","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wildlife","tag-dauphin-island-sea-lab","tag-grand-bay-nerr-manatees","tag-manatee-sighting-network","tag-mississippi-manatees","tag-mississippi-sound-boating-safety","tag-science","tag-wildlife"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/839201","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=839201"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/839201\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/839202"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=839201"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=839201"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=839201"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}