] Researchers believe manatee voices could help them
] develop a visual warning system that would reduce the
] number of sea cows killed and injured by boats.
]
] Deke Beusse, a University of Florida veterinarian who
] heads the Marine Mammal Medicine Program, has performed
] experiments using hydrophones underwater listening
] devices at Homosassa Springs State Wildlife Park
] in Citrus County.
]
] The research was prompted by the soaring number of
] boat-related deaths, which reached a record 95 last year.
]
] "We thought if we could pick up the sounds of manatees,
] we could warn boaters of their presence," Beusse said.
] "When we played it back, they started vocalizing more
] %u2014 three times as much as normal and
] approached the speakers."
]
] Beusse hopes that in the wild, speakers can be placed in
] channels, where they would prompt and intensify manatee
] vocalizations.
]
] "The sounds would send a signal to a beacon that would
] begin flashing, letting boaters know they're there," he
] said. "Boaters wouldn't have to put anything on their
] boats."