Manatee caught swimming in fuel spill in Miami river

A Miami woman caught a video of a manatee swimming in a gasoline spill in Miami's Little River, which flows into Biscayne Bay.

A clip recorded by Yanina Barrington, and shared on social media, has caused concern among Florida wildlife protectors over the fuel dump in a popular waterway that is affecting manatees, an endangered species.

As revealed in a note fromNBC Miami, the woman, who lives next to the river, recorded the video from the patio of her house.

He said the fuel spills have been continuous for two years, but the source is unknown.

"We have oil spills every two months or every month, they are very short, they usually last two, three hours," said Barrington.

"The oil is not much, so it dissipates as soon as it happens, you know, in two or three hours. By the time you send a report and the coast guard shows up, it is very difficult for them to locate the source," he denounced.

Manatees are considered a threatened species under the federal Endangered Species Act.

In Florida there are between 7,000 and 8,000 of these animals, according to state estimates, but in recent years several factors have threatened its existence.

According to data from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), in 2019 more than 130 lost their lives due to boat strikes in the state's waterways.

In 2021, another FWC report indicated the lack of seagrass as the main cause of death of the manatee and to this is added another no less deadly cause: the pollution of marine waters.

The coasts of southern Florida have witnessed these mammals that They have surprised the batherson more than one occasion.