The Zoo opened Manatee Coast in 1999 as a partner in the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s Manatee Rescue and Rehabilitation Program. Eight male manatees have been housed at Manatee Coast with four being rehabilitated and sent to Florida for release to the wild over the past five years. The remaining males were returned to Florida in August 2005 as part of the Zoo’s continuing role in the rehabilitation program. In 2006, three manatees, Dundee, Turtle and Gene, were released to the wild. Following the return of the males to Florida, three females, Holly, Willoughby, and Stubby, arrived from the Homosassa State Park and Sea World in Florida. The move was designed to facilitate multiple research studies examining the significance of a recently discovered non-lethal papilloma virus that is specific to manatees. As a result, the Zoo has entered into an extensive multi-agency, multi-institution research initiative focused on studying various aspects of the virus. Through the new exploratory program, it is hoped that a successful resolution to the papilloma virus in question will allow the Zoo to return to releases, including the release of the females.

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