What is the history of the manatee listing action?
In August 2001, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) received a petition (http://myfwc.com/imperiledspecies/petitions/manatee.htm) from the Coastal Conservation Association to evaluate the endangered status of the West Indian manatee (Trichechus manatus), specifically the Florida subspecies (T. manatus latirostris). In October 2001, the FWCs Commissioners accepted this petition and directed staff to complete a biological status review of the Florida manatee. This review was completed in 2003. Since then, the FWC has revised its listing process, and another manatee biological status review was conducted under the new process. The report was finalized and presented at the June 2006 Commission meeting. FWC is proceeding with the final phase of reclassification and has drafted a new management plan for the species. The public comment period runs until 5:00 p.m. on January 11, 2007.
