Florida Fish and Wildlife officials were called out Thursday morning to rescue a manatee calf stranded in a St. Petersburg canal.
“It’s probably what we consider a second year calf,” said Andy Garrett, with FWC. “Kind of a dependent size and really should be with the mom."
Using nets, the rescue team pulled the animal to safety.
"This time of year, manatees should be by power plants on a cold day like today,” Garrett said. “This is pretty far away from the power plant."
Harvis Brantley was working on a road in the area and is the one who called FWC for help.
"I saw it swimming in circles and I didn’t notice the mom with it,” Brantley said. “It was really small so I was just kind of concerned."
Garrett said the manatees face shows signs of cold and stress and has probably been sick from the cold for some time now.
He is set to recover at Tampa’s Lowry Park Zoo.