Bay area neighborhoods that help to promote manatee protection can now earn special recognition for their efforts through an innovative program developed by the Estuary Program’s Manatee Awareness Coalition (MAC).

The “Manatee-Friendly Neighborhood” program honors communities that complete activities to educate their residents about manatees and the seagrass habitats they depend upon. Activities range from posting manatee caution signs on a percentage of neighborhood docks, to conducting neighborhood monofilament line cleanups, to supplying nearby boating businesses with boater’s guides and other informational materials for distribution to their patrons.

To earn “Manatee-Friendly” status, a neighborhood must complete five activities. Neighborhoods that meet the criteria will earn official designation as a “Manatee Friendly Neighborhood” and be given a distinctive sign to post at their community entrance.

Although some of the activities are designed for waterfront neighborhoods, land-locked communities also are eligible and encouraged to participate. These neighborhoods may earn designation in a variety of ways: marking neighborhood storm drains with “no dumping” messages; publishing manatee protection tips in their association newsletter; or adopting a Tampa Bay manatee through Save The Manatee Club’s Adopt-A-Manatee program, for example.

Neighborhood Manatee Watch is an extension of the existing boater-oriented Manatee Watch program administered by Tampa BayWatch and coordinated by the MAC. Currently, the Manatee Watch program recruits and trains volunteers to provide safe boating information and tools such as polarized glasses and nautical charts to area boaters, both on the water and at area boat ramps.

The neighborhood component expands that outreach to waterfront communities where a high percentage of residents have private docks. The neighborhood program not only encourages safe boating, it discourages feeding manatees or giving them water, which can alter their natural behavior, often resulting in harm to the animals.

“We’re hoping to create a grassroots sense of stewardship to protect manatees and seagrasses by taking our message to area neighborhoods. We want residents to understand that they can make a difference through actions they take in their everyday lives,” said Erica Moulton, chair of the MAC’s Education Committee and an instructor at Hillsborough Community College.

Any neighborhood in Hillsborough, Manatee or Pinellas counties is eligible to participate in the Manatee-Friendly Neighborhood program. Interested communities will receive a brief presentation about the program and a Neighborhood Notebook filled with activities, resource lists, and samples of free educational materials available. Additionally, interested neighborhoods will be assigned their personal “community advisor” from among the MAC membership to help them implement their Neighborhood Manatee Watch activities.

To learn more about Neighborhood Manatee Watch, or to schedule a presentation, contact Nanette Holland (727) 893-2765 or e-mail nanette@tbep.org.

The Manatee Awareness Coalition is a dynamic alliance of scientists, citizens and representatives of special interest groups working to protect Tampa Bay manatees and their habitat.