Rehabilitated manatee and calf released back to wild in Key Largo
After eight months in rehabilitation at SeaWorld Orlando, a manatee and her calf were returned to their home in the Florida Keys on Wednesday.
The mother, which biologists named Stripes, was tangled in fishing line when the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and a federally-licensed marine mammal rescue group, Dolphin Research Center, captured her in May. But getting her was a challenge.
People think of manatees as slow and meandering, but when they want to, they can use their large fluke and make a quick get-away. They also know the ins and outs of the local waterways and can remain elusive underwater when they don’t want to be seen.
“Every time we tried to get her, she was crafty and would get away at the last minute,” said Nicholas Ricci, SeaWorld’s supervisor of marine-mammal rescues.
But, what helped biologists catch up to Stripes was that she had just given birth to her first calf, Ricci said. Instead of continually trying to get away from the biologists and fish and wildlife officers, she was moving slow, keeping a close eye on her baby, Ricci said.
“She was being an outstanding mom, so that gave FWC a better opportunity to get her safely corralled and rescued,” Ricci said.
On Wednesday, SeaWorld staff, volunteers and FWC officers delivered Stipes and her calf, a male that SeaWorld biologists named Argyle, to a boat ramp at John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park in Key Largo to be released back into the wild.
The biologists named the mammals after the patterns on their skin, Ricci said. Scientists estimate Stripes is about 6-8 years old. Before delivering her back to the sea, she weighed in at 1,075 pounds. Argyle weighed 218 pounds, Ricci said.
Manatees usually live to about 25 years old, but have been known to live into their 50s.
“That’s like people living to 100 though,” Ricci said. “It can happen, it’s just not going to happen to everybody.”
As dozens of people lined the docks to watch, volunteers and biologists carefully unloaded the large mammals from the back of a SeaWorld box truck onto the boat ramp. Biologists measured the animals and checked their health before lifting the tarps by metal poles and carefully walking them into the water.
It was important that both were released at the same time so they did not get separated. Calves and mothers usually stay together for two years, and the calves depend on the mothers not only for nutrition, but to learn how to independently feed and navigate, according to SeaWorld.
The pair did well in Orlando, but there were complications, Ricci said. The main problem was the fishing line caused extensive damage to the mother’s left flipper. So much so that veterinarians decided it had to be amputated, Ricci said. She is still able to swim though.
The mother was initially treated by a Dolphin Research Center veterinarian in May, who determined she needed more medical care. The FWC transported her and the calf to SeaWorld, the rescue group said.
But, even as the mother was healing at SeaWold, biologists saw that Stripes was not nursing Argyle, and the calf was not able to get needed milk, Ricci said.
“So, in order for her calf to survive, we had to give it a bottle with formula. We had to keep them in rehab to the point where the baby no longer needed that formula and could survive on vegetation all by himself,” Ricci said.
It’s well known that boat propellers cause a serious risk to manatees, but SeaWorld staff and FWC officials say they hope the story of Stripes and Argyle will also educate people on the importance of properly disposing of fishing line.
“We put a lot of hard work, a lot of energy into this, so we are extremely excited to be here today and give them a second chance to get them back out,” Ricci said.
This story was originally published January 28, 2026 at 4:32 PM.
