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LOAD-DATE: January 6, 1998

LEVEL 1 - 4 OF 5 STORIES

The Tampa Tribune

January 6, 1998, Tuesday, FINAL EDITION

SECTION: BAYLIFE, Pg. 1

LENGTH: 570 words

HEADLINE: Manatees get new safe haven

BYLINE: JIM TUNSTALL; of The Tampa Tribune

DATELINE: CRYSTAL RIVER

BODY:

Chalk up another "do not disturb" sign for manatees.

Federal wildlife officials are using an emergency rule to enforce a new sanctuary just outside Three Sisters Spring in Crystal River.

It's the seventh west Citrus County zone where the endangered mammals have a haven from pesky humans.

The 120-day rule bars people and boats from entering a small area just west of U.S. 19. The warm-water habitat is a favorite of manatees that linger there on cold mornings. It's also popular among snorkelers and divers seeking a look at the gentle giants.

But sometimes human presence is more than a spectator sport.

"Some people poke or tug at them," says Ted Ondler, spokesman for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge.

Some latch on for a ride or climb on their backs, adds Robert Turner, the service's Jacksonville-based manatee coordinator. Volunteer observers saw one person sit on a manatee's head while another took a photograph.

Most area dive shops tell customers what they can and can't do.

But some folks don't get the picture.

"There's always two or three who don't care, but most people obey the rules," says Jerry Hogan, owner of Crystal Lodge Dive Center and part owner of Crystal River Manatee Dive and Tour.

"It's mandatory that customers watch a video" on the species and rules.

"Sometimes just the sheer volume (of divers, snorkelers and swimmers) can be harassment."

Harassment is anything that alters manatees' natural behavior, Turner says. The penalty for violating the rules: Up to a year in jail and a $ 50,000 fine.

The sanctuaries, part of the sprawling refuge, appear to be working.

West Citrus County's wintering herd has risen in 11 years from 171 to 369, the federal count on Dec. 2. On the coldest mornings, there may be 30 or more in the Three Sisters Spring area and 280 or so in nearby Kings Bay.

"They're all over," including outside the sanctuaries when temperatures warm, says Hogan, a dive operator for more than 19 years. "Many of them are people friendly. Sometimes, when you jump in the water they're all over you, wanting to be scratched."

Wildlife officials say there are at least 2,600 manatees in Florida. That's up from 1,200 a decade ago. But researchers and manatee lovers fear years like 1996, when 415 manatees died in Florida. Of those, about 150 died because of a red tide outbreak in southwest Florida. Sixty more died from boat collisions.

The previous high was 206 deaths in 1990.

Sanctuaries and boat-speed limits keep death counts low in west Citrus.

Last summer, local dive operators tried to get county and city governments to set up a local sanctuary at Three Sisters. When that failed to happen, the federal government took charge, imposing the emergency zone three weeks ago.

"It's where we wanted it," Hogan says.

Turner says Three Sisters remains a good manatee-watching area.

"The sanctuary allows you to see in without driving them out."

The sanctuaries are in force from Nov. 15 to March 31 each year. That's when manatees take refuge in the area's warm springs, which stay 72 degrees year-round.

The Three Sisters emergency rule will expire a few days before the end of the season. But federal officials are proposing a permanent sanctuary at the site. It could be approved before the end of March.

Jim Tunstall writes about Florida. Reach him at (352) 628-5558.

GRAPHIC: PHOTO 2(1C); MAP (C),

(MAP) (C) Protected sites Source: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service ESSEX JAMES,

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LOAD-DATE: January 7, 1998