MANATEE or SEA COW 



Trichcch us latirostris. 



Although once common all along our southern shores, the 

 manatee, which receives its name from the Latin "manus," meaning 

 "hand,'' because of the resemblance of the use of its flippers to that 

 of hands, is now found only in the estuaries and lagoons of Florida 

 and Mexico. The similarity in general outline between the upper 

 portion of the body and that of the human form is also said to have 

 been the foundation of the famous mermaid legends, especially since 

 the female, clasping her young to her breast, often shows her head 

 above water. Most of the existence of the manatee is, however, 

 spent floating beneath the surface of the bays and river mouths 

 where it lives, using its round flat tail as a propeller and rudder, 

 although it seems to have too little intelligence or initiative to care 

 much which way it shall go. 



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