West Indian manatee
Amazing fact
The West Indian manatee can somersault underwater and swim belly-up.
University of Michigan Animal Diversity Web
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An illustration based on the real animal.
A little discovery to share.
The West Indian manatee can somersault underwater and swim belly-up.
THE REAL WORLD
The real West Indian manatee
- Scientific name
- Trichechus manatus
- Japanese name
- アメリカマナティー
- Group
- Ocean animals
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Sirenia
- Family
- Trichechidae
- Genus
- Trichechus
A plant-eating mammal that lives in rivers, lakes and coasts near river mouths in tropical and subtropical areas of the Atlantic.
It mainly eats seagrass growing on the sea floor, using its flexible, split upper lip to pass food into its mouth.
Because the plants it eats wear down its teeth, its back teeth keep being replaced by new ones throughout its life.
How the West Indian manatee lives
It is active both day and night. It may also use its flippers to dig up plant roots. It rests for long periods near the surface or on the bottom. While resting on the bottom, it rises to the surface to breathe.
University of Michigan Animal Diversity WebBasic data
- Size
- up to 4.5 m, average 3 mUniversity of Michigan Animal Diversity Web
- Weight
- 200–1,500 kg, average 400 kgUniversity of Michigan Animal Diversity Web
- Diet
- Mainly seagrassesUniversity of Michigan Animal Diversity Web
- Range
- Tropical and subtropical Atlantic region沖縄美ら海水族館
Where the West Indian manatee has been recorded
Records: GBIF.org (CC0 and CC BY 4.0 records, retrieved 2026-11-07). Map: Natural EarthSee the records on GBIF
Watch wild animals from a distance. Do not touch or feed them, and take care of the places where they live.
Names around the world
- 日本語
- アメリカマナティー
- 简体中文
- 北美海牛
- 繁體中文
- 北美海牛
- 한국어
- 서인도제도매너티
- Español
- Manatí antillano
- Français
- Lamantin
- Deutsch
- Karibik-Manati
- Português (Brasil)
- Peixe-boi-marinho
- Italiano
- Lamantino dei Caraibi
- العربية
- خروف البحر الأمريكي
- Bahasa Indonesia
- Lembu laut amerika utara
- Русский
- Американский ламантин
- Türkçe
- Karayip manatisi
Names come from Wikidata and iNaturalist records. Where a language has no recorded name, we use the scientific name.
Sources and how we check
- 沖縄美ら海水族館 — アメリカマナティーChecked: 2026-11-03
- University of Michigan Animal Diversity Web — Trichechus manatusChecked: 2026-11-03
We check each fact against its source. The illustrations simplify how the real animal looks.
The classification (class, order, family, genus) follows Wikidata records, checked against GBIF. Classifications can change as research goes on.
The basic data are the values given in each source. They vary with how the animal is measured, whether it is male or female, and whether it lives in the wild or in captivity.
This page was translated from the original Japanese with the help of AI.
Report a mistakeRead how to tell them apart
Dugong and West Indian manatee: how to tell them apart
A dugong has an indented tail, while a West Indian manatee has a paddle-shaped tail.
RELATIVES
Others in Trichechidae
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