Adopt-A-Manatee®

Clog was first identified in Homosassa, Florida, in 1993, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s photo-identification database, showing that he is over 31 years old! In 2007, Clog was rescued after naturally stranding on a low tide near Tampa, Florida, and a health assessment was performed before he was released into Tampa Bay. Since then, he has been documented in Homosassa, Tampa Bay, and Crystal River, as well as throughout Alabama and Mississippi waters.

When Clog was tagged with a satellite tag in Alabama in 2022, researchers quickly realized that he had been given a health assessment before in Florida. He was identified by a Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tag, similar to the microchip used for dogs or cats. During the two years Clog wore a satellite tag, he spent time along the Alabama and Mississippi coasts, with frequent sightings in Dog River, the Mobile-Tensaw Delta, and Bayou La Batre in Alabama, and in the Mississippi Sound. He also spent considerable time in Santa Rosa Sound off the coast of the Florida Panhandle during his migrations. Uniquely, Clog is often sighted with other manatees and is hardly ever seen alone. Clog’s distinct name and sociable personality have made him a crowd favorite in Alabama.

Manatees are concentrated in peninsular Florida in the winter, usually November through March. But in the summer months, they are more widely distributed, and sightings along the northern Gulf and U.S. Atlantic coasts are increasingly common. It was in 2007 that Dauphin Island Sea Lab started their Manatee Sighting Network to track manatees in Alabama and surrounding waters. The DISL/MSN team continues to monitor manatee migrations and habitat use in the northern Gulf.

A portion of proceeds from adoptions of Clog are used to help fund DISL/MSN’s awareness and outreach efforts. DISL/MSN promotes manatee education by distributing Save the Manatee Club’s public awareness waterway signs and boat decals in Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana.