for the State of Florida. To meet these objectives, the 
Commission either transferred funds to the U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service or contracted directly for the described 
activities. 
Problem Identification, Overview, and Coordination of 
Efforts to Protect the West Indian Manatee and its Habitat 
(U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) 
Based upon a number of reviews, including on-site 
evaluations, the Commission concluded, and the Fish and 
Wildlife Service agreed, that the Service needed a full-time 
program coordinator to oversee, facilitate, and coordinate 
the efforts of the various responsible and interested 
groups (see Chapter III). Therefore, the Commission provided 
funds and guidance to the Service, which in turn, contracted 
with the Florida Audubon Society to provide a full-time 
Manatee Recovery Activities Coordinator. During 1980, the 
Coordinator met regularly with representatives of the responsible 
agencies and interested organizations, developed the draft 
of the detailed plan of action for facilitating the protection 
and recovery of manatee populations in Florida, and provided 
assistance to the Service's management team pending the 
Service's appointment of a full-time staff person with 
management responsibility. Under the terms of the Interagency 
Agreement with the Commission, the Service agreed to provide 
two additional years' support for the Coordinator. 
Development of a Research/Management Plan for the 
Crystal River Manatee Population 
(U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) 
Available information on the distribution and movements 
of manatees suggests that there are a number of more or less 
discrete populations or sub-populations of manatees in 
Florida. Human-related threats to these populations or sub- 
populations appear to be area-specific so that protection 
and recovery of the population as a whole will require 
development and implementation of a number of area-specific 
research/management programs. Therefore, the Commission 
provided funds and guidance to the Fish and Wildlife Service 
to initiate development of a research/management plan for 
the manatee population which overwinters in the Crystal 
River area of Florida. The plan, intended to serve as a 
model for developing research/management plans for manatee 
populations in other areas as well as the plan for the 
Crystal River area proper, is expected in the spring of 
1981. 
= 1 
