HOMOSASSA, Fla. — A spike of recent manatee deaths in Citrus County has people like Laura King concerned.
King lives along the Halls River, a tributary of the Homosassa River, and spotted one of the carcasses on Saturday.
“I’m pretty much out here every morning with them. I spend a lot of time with them,” she said. “It’s very concerning.”
So far, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) said 14 dead manatees have been reported in the area in recent weeks. Most were found in the Homosassa River, and a few were located in tributaries like the Halls River.
And it’s not just manatees. Catfish are being spotted dead, too, in the Homosassa River and the Anclote River to the south.
Citrus County Commissioner Diana Finegan said it’s important for FWC to figure out what’s happening for the sake of the wildlife and local economy.
“I think our tourism thrives on it. We’re the only county in the nation where you can come and safely swim with manatees,” she said.
The FWC is investigating the two events, which it believes are not related.
Save the Manatee Club is also monitoring the manatee deaths.
Tiare Fridrich, a manatee biologist with the nonprofit, said she needs more data before reaching a hypothesis. But she said the deaths seem reminiscent of what happened in Hernando County in early 2024, months after Hurricane Idalia.
“With that storm coming through, a lot of the grasses died,” she said at the time.
Fridrich believes recent Hurricanes Helene and Milton likely did the same thing in Citrus County, so as a result of the grass losses, manatees might be getting sick and dying from eating algae.
In fact, the FWC said at least five of the 14 manatee deaths “are attributed to an acute natural gut infection from a dietary change to macroalgae.”
Whatever’s happening, King hopes no more will die. She can’t bear to see another manatee dead.
“I literally — I cried,” she said. “I was in tears.”
Both she and Finegan are hoping for concrete answers soon.
“Just to make sure that it stops with the catfish, that we can stop the manatee deaths, and hopefully, it doesn’t spread to birds or other fish,” Finegan said.
“We’re ready for our visitors.”
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