Living “Mermaids” of the Sea
IN January 1493, Christopher Columbus was exploring in a northwestern area of what is now the Dominican Republic. Suddenly he spotted three large sea creatures moving slowly through the waters of a pristine river. It is thought that he was at the shoreline of what is presently called the Rio Yaque del Norte.
Columbus’ excitement over the sighting moved his chronicler to write that the admiral “said he saw three mermaids . . . they were not as beautiful as they are painted though they had something like the human face.” The writer also said that earlier Columbus had seen “mermaids” off the coast of West Africa.
Common Belief
In those days, sightings of fanciful sea maidens were said to be common among seafarers. A whole array of tales surrounded mermaids. Throughout medieval Europe stories circulated about half-human, half-fish women marrying men, luring ships to disaster, causing floods and other misfortunes.
Mermaids were reported to have magical, prophetic powers and supposedly were long-lived and enjoyed music. Woe to mortal men who offended mermaids or accepted gifts from them, for calamity would surely follow! For instance, a rock in the Rhine River near Sankt Goarshausen, West Germany, is associated with the legendary mermaid Lorelei, who is supposed to have drowned many unsuspecting sailors because she had an ill-fated romance.
Belief in mermaids was so strong that even as late as the 1800’s people were duped by hoaxes. In 1842, famed showman P. T. Barnum made a fortune by exhibiting a stuffed mermaid. During the same period, a Japanese company capitalized on the credulous public by selling stuffed mermaids purportedly captured by fishermen.
Where and when mermaid stories got started is shrouded in mystery. They reach back into antiquity and are found in the folklore of almost every country. However, researchers have compared details of the legends with known habits of marine creatures and have concluded that mermaids may be a distortion of encounters between men and a real animal. It is accepted that mermaid sagas are based on superstitious descriptions of the large, jovial mammal, the sea cow.
Indeed, the sea cow does have one human characteristic that qualifies it of sorts as a living mermaid of the sea. Females suckle offspring above water by cradling the young in their forelimbs at breasts located on the chest. Imagine the impression some sailors got seeing from a distance nursing sea cows bobbing vertically in the water holding a young calf to the breast. In their mind, it had to be a mermaid.
Sea cows hardly look like humans. Their bodies are spindle shaped, tapering from small heads to large horizontal flippers. They have thick, grayish skin and square bristly snouts. They may grow seven feet (2.1 m) to 15 feet (4.6 m) in length and weigh as much as 1,500 pounds (680 kg).
Not exactly the profile of a beautiful damsel, is it? However, all the romantic puffery attached to sea cows has led scientists to preserve a bit of the mermaid past by naming the animal order Sirenia. This reflects Grecian mythology of the half-woman, half-bird Sirens that enticed sailors to their death by songs.
Small Family
One would think that with the abundant sightings of sea cows over the years there must be a multitude of them living in the oceans of the earth. That was true in the past. In fact, early in the last century a gigantic sea-cow herd measuring three and a half miles (5.6 km) wide and one and a half miles (2.4 km) long was seen off the coast of Australia. Such vast numbers in one single location do not exist now. There are only four species of Sirenians and they are scattered in diminished numbers in tropical regions.
Three species live in isolated pockets along the Florida coast of the United States, in the Caribbean Sea, in West Africa, and along the Amazon River. These sea cows are more commonly known as manatees, a name derived from the Indian word manati, meaning “breast.” Apparently, so numerous were manatees in and around what is now Puerto Rico in the 1700’s that a town and a river were named after the creature.
Voracious Eaters
Just about every variety of sea-growing plant can be found on the sea cow’s menu. These strict vegetarians spend at least eight hours daily satisfying their voracious appetite for seaweed, hyacinth, widgeon grass, and leaves and stems of other aquatic plants. They eat 60 to 100 pounds (27 to 45 kg) of food daily. On an average, sea cows eat one pound of food for each 10 pounds of body weight.
No water plant is safe from the muscular upper lips of the sea cows, which have powerful muscles for ripping up tasty morsels. It makes no difference if plants grow in salt water or fresh water, on the water’s surface or beneath, and even along riverbanks a foot above the water. Despite their size, sea cows undauntedly overcome such obstacles in their quest for a lunch. Should the meal be at the bottom, sea cows fill their lungs up with air and submerge for five- to 10-minute grazes. Some strong-lunged beasts stay underwater 16 minutes.
Eating habits of sea cows have been beneficial to man. In southern Florida, manatees have been used to clear weed-choked canals that act as drainage ways. In Guyana, about 70 of these weed mowers recently were brought in to unclog waterways. Officials there figure the manatees saved them thousands of dollars. Then in Xochimilco, Mexico, vegetable farmers faced a crisis when superabundant water lilies affected their irrigation systems. In came four manatees to replace a crew of 300 men.
Manatees oftentimes feed in groups of 10 to 20 animals, moving lazily about to graze on sea “meadows” in the same fashion as cattle. That is why these gentle giants are called sea cows. Considering their low-keyed activity you might think that sea cows are clumsy or inept. But appearances are deceiving. Frighten one of these titans and you will see immediate reaction from that powerful hind flipper. Extremely sensitive to disturbance, the animals can stream away at 20 miles (32 km) an hour, leaving a foamy, wavy surface behind.
Reproduction Slow
Sea cows do not always congregate to share a meal. Seeing a large herd could signal that courtship is in progress. Once would-be parents are paired, they move to shallow water for mating. Gestation may take about 150 days. A calf at birth weighs 25 to 60 pounds (11 to 27 kg) and may be the only offspring of the cow for three years. Parents sometimes have twin calves.
Close maternal care and parental cooperation mark the raising of a newborn. For one thing, the calf is born underwater and would quickly drown if not taken immediately to the surface. Upon birth, you can see the mother tenderly pushing or hauling the youngster up for fresh air. One manatee in a Florida aquarium gave especially good care to her offspring. She hoisted the calf onto her back and held it above water for 45 minutes. Then she submerged, only to rise immediately. She bobbed up and down, each time lengthening her stay beneath the surface as the youngster learned to breathe properly. In another aquarium, the male gave a helping hand. When the cow tired of training the calf, the male would swim over to continue the newborn’s breathing and swimming exercises.
Out in the wild, calves stay with their mothers for about two years, being weaned finally when they weigh about 400 pounds (181 kg). Then off they swim to divide their time between eating and playing with other herds or just to explore alone. Sea cows are gregarious only up to a limit. Groups break up regularly, then reassemble after individuals have been on their own for a short while.
In large groups, sea cows display sportive antics that include a host of body positionings. Often you can see two of these bulky animals floating head to head, rubbing their muzzles together. Or, an animal will swim alongside another and slip a flat foreleg around the back of a companion for a neighborly embrace. They even enjoy a game of nudging one another as though playing tag. All this frolicking often is accompanied by a chorus of high-pitched sounds in the form of squeaks and squeals. Scientists say the touching between sea cows and the serenade of sounds are forms of communication because the animals have poor senses of hearing and sight.
Should you find yourself swimming with one or more of these awesome-looking creatures, don’t fret: sea cows are harmless. If they manifest any temper at all, which is seldom, it usually involves two bulls vying for the affections of a cow. In fact, divers in Florida enjoy the company of manatees, for the lovable animals often roll onto their side to allow humans to rub their back or stomach. One aquarium manatee enjoyed attention so much he rubbed noses with his keeper.
Endangered Species
Such easygoing and sociable behavior has worked against their well-being to some degree. Manatees have no natural enemies that prey upon them for food, but human hunters, sportsmen and poachers, who disregard protective laws, take a heavy toll on their numbers. The fact that sea cows confine themselves to shallow-water bodies makes them easy targets for those who exploit the animals for hides or meat.
In populated areas where boating is intense, sea cows are victimized by lacerating propellers that kill or injure them. Manatees in Florida waters often have large scars on their backs testifying to encounters with motorboats.
Stringent laws in some nations make it a crime to kill sea cows. Heavy fines are imposed on those who disregard such laws. This has helped somewhat, as seen from the reappearance of a small herd of manatees in areas of Florida where sea cows haven’t roamed for years. Nevertheless, ecologists fear that the placid giants may become extinct because of the burgeoning human population and development near their natural habitat.
True, manatees may not fit the image of legendary mermaid beauties envisioned by ancient mariners or artists. But these uniquely designed creatures do fit a role of bringing delight to humans who are fortunate enough to see these living “mermaids” of the sea.