Uploaded March 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
This Manatee Appreciation Day, we are learning how the manatee research team from Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute (CMARI) monitors manatees after release. Using satellite tracking tag technology that has been developed by researchers over the last 50 years, our team is able to locate and safely observe manatees released into the wild to learn about their movements and ensure they are staying healthy. Tracking equipment helps find and identify the manatees even in estuaries and rivers where manatees are often found in dark and murky waters.
Today, we’re tracking a rescued manatee named Julien, who was recently released this past February by the Manatee Rescue and Rehabilitation Partnership (MRP). He was released at the TECO Manatee Viewing Center following his rehabilitation at ZooTampa at Lowry Park after being rescued in February 2025 due to cold stress. Julien remains in the Tampa Bay area, where our team found him in the Little Manatee River.
You can help manatees by supporting conservation efforts to protect them, slowing down on the water and giving animals space in areas where they are found, and by appreciating them from a safe distance. You can read field notes from our researchers, and follow Julien and other manatees tracked by CMARI for the MRP at manateemap.org/julien.
© 2026 Clearwater Marine Aquarium
We believe in preserving our environment while inspiring the human spirit through leadership in the rescue, rehabilitation, and release of marine life; environmental education; research; and conservation. We are a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization.
facebook.com/ClearwaterMarineAquarium
instagram.com/cmaquarium
twitter.com/CMAquarium
tiktok.com/@cmaquarium
cmaquarium.org
This Manatee Appreciation Day, we are learning how the manatee research team from Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute (CMARI) monitors manatees after release. Using satellite tracking tag technology that has been developed by researchers over the last 50 years, our team is able to locate and safely observe manatees released into the wild to learn about their movements and ensure they are staying healthy. Tracking equipment helps find and identify the manatees even in estuaries and rivers where manatees are often found in dark and murky waters.
Today, we’re tracking a rescued manatee named Julien, who was recently released this past February by the Manatee Rescue and Rehabilitation Partnership (MRP). He was released at the TECO Manatee Viewing Center following his rehabilitation at ZooTampa at Lowry Park after being rescued in February 2025 due to cold stress. Julien remains in the Tampa Bay area, where our team found him in the Little Manatee River.
You can help manatees by supporting conservation efforts to protect them, slowing down on the water and giving animals space in areas where they are found, and by appreciating them from a safe distance. You can read field notes from our researchers, and follow Julien and other manatees tracked by CMARI for the MRP at manateemap.org/julien.
© 2026 Clearwater Marine Aquarium
We believe in preserving our environment while inspiring the human spirit through leadership in the rescue, rehabilitation, and release of marine life; environmental education; research; and conservation. We are a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization.
facebook.com/ClearwaterMarineAquarium
instagram.com/cmaquarium
twitter.com/CMAquarium
tiktok.com/@cmaquarium
cmaquarium.org
