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Taxonomy

KingdomANIMALIA

Phylum(espcie) CHORDATA

ClassMAMMALIA

OrderSIRENIA

FamilyTRICHECHIDAE

Scientific Name:Trichechus inunguis

Species Authority:(Natterer, 1883)

Common Name/s:

French- LamantinD'Amrique Du Sud, Lamantin De L'Amazone

English - Amazonian Manatee, South American Manatee

Spanish - Lamantino Amaznico, Manat Amaznico,Vaca Marina

Trichechus inunguis is here listed as Vulnerable based on a suspected population decline

of at least 30% within the next three generations(assuming a generation length of 20 years,

based on what is known for T. manatus) due primarily to ongoing levels of hunting, sometimes

involving new and sophisticated techniques, coupled with increasing incidental calf mortality,

climate change and habitat loss and degradation.

Geographic Range

Range Description:

Amazonian manatees occur through most the Amazon River drainage, from the headwaters, in

Colombia, Ecuador and Peru (Timm et al. 1986) to the mouth of the Amazon (close to the

Maraj Island) in Brazil (Domning 1981) over an estimated seven million square kilometers.

However, they are patchily distributed, concentrating in areas of nutrient-rich flooded forest,

which covers around 300,000 km (Junk 1997).

Countries:

Native: Brazil; Colombia; Ecuador; Peru

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Habitat and Ecology

Amazonian manatees inhabit environments in lowland tropical areas below 300 m asl, where

there is large production of aquatic and semi-aquatic plants; they also favor calm, shallow

waters, away from human settlements

Only one calf is produced at a time. Although no specific studies are available for the species inthe wild, it is believed that the reproductive cycle is similar to the West Indian Manatees, with a

long gestation and lactation period (up to 24 months), and a birthing interval of 2 to 3 months;

age at sexual maturity is unknown.

Systems: Freshwater; Marine

Threats: The major threats to the species include hunting for food, incidental capture in gill

nets, and habitat degradation.

Conservation Actions

Listed on Appendix I of CITES. Presently there are no national management plans specific for

the species, except in Colombia. Management plans exist for two protected areas (Pacaya

Samiria in Peru and Mamiraua Reserve in Brazil), and two communities in Colombia (Puerto

Narino and Mocagua) have informal local management agreements (Ministerio de Ambiente,

Vivienda y Desarrollo Territorial and Fundacin Omacha 2005). Amazonian Manatees have

been recorded from two protected areas in Ecuador, two in Colombia, four in Peru and 23 in

Brazil. Unfortunately, hunting continues even within protected areas.

Bibliography

UCN. 1990. IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK.

IUCN. 2008. 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Available at:http://www.iucnredlist.org .(Accessed: 5 October

2008).

http://www.iucnredlist.org/http://www.iucnredlist.org/http://www.iucnredlist.org/http://www.iucnredlist.org/