The SeaWorld Animal Rescue Team returned a rehabilitated manatee to the warm Florida waters after being rescued from a power facility in South Carolina this past December.
The manatee, nicknamed Goose during his 3 month rehab at SeaWorld Orlando, was returned near the Kennedy Point Marina in Titusville.
Goose was rescued this past December by a collection of members from SeaWorld Orlando, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, South Carolina Department of Natural Resources and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The manatee traditionally would have been migrating to warmer Florida waters in the winter, but was taken to SeaWorld Orlando for a medical examination and rehabilitation before it could be cleared for return to a local Florida waterway.
Due to dropping water temperatures in the area, the manatee stayed close to the power facility’s warm water, leaving it isolated from an adequate food source and naturally warm water.
