Florida manatees face another difficult winter

What's happening: A report published in August suggests many of the remaining manatees could be dealing with chronic starvation already.

What they did: Scientists inspected fat, muscle and stomachs of 231 manatee carcasses found this January and February.

What they found: 88% had findings consistent with malnutrition.

• Necropsy data indicate that manatees had experienced starvation and malnutrition before entering winter.
• They saw severe, extensive tissue atrophy, likely the result of malnutrition through multiple seasons.

Flashback: State biologists are still trying to end an Unusual Mortality Event that started in the Indian River Lagoon in December 2020.

• Last year, a record 1,101 dead manatees were reported in Florida waters.