By Ragan Whitlock, Center for Biological Diversity
Hundreds of thousands of visitors flock to the Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge every winter hoping to catch a glimpse of Florida manatees reveling in the warm, natural spring waters dedicated to their protection.
When visitors arrive, they’re often greeted by those manatees. But sadly, what’s easiest to remember are those irresponsible kayakers, manatee tour boats and recreational swimmers who harass Florida’s iconic marine mammals.
Manatee harassment has been rampant in the refuge for decades and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recognized the issue as early as 1997.
Since then, it’s only gotten worse.
In 2014 the harassment grew so bad that the refuge manager at the time bluntly stated, “I believe the amount of unregulated activity in (the refuge) is likely resulting in the take of manatees.” In plain terms, they meant that inadequately managed boating, swimming and other interactions were hurting manatees and violating the Endangered Species Act.
This all raises a key question: If the issue is so well known, even by the Fish and Wildlife Service, why is this behavior continuing?
Even though Crystal River is a treasure, and the only refuge in the United States dedicated to protecting Florida manatees, it has not had the support needed to safeguard our whiskery friends. Crystal River has been chronically understaffed since its creation in 1983. As of January 2025, it shared only eight full-time staffers with four other refuges spanning more than 32,000 acres along Florida’s Gulf Coast.
But this past Valentine’s Day that tiny staff shrunk further. Two people were cut when the Trump administration’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency team slashed the federal workforce, firing more than 400 Fish and Wildlife Service employees on a single conference call.
The refuge lost a quarter of its staff during the busy manatee season. While many federal employees were reinstated following public outcry and court orders, the refuge remains woefully understaffed.
The Trump administration has made it clear that further dismantling federal agencies is a primary goal. Most recently the administration asked the Supreme Court to clear the way for downsizing the federal workforce despite multiple court rulings that congressional approval is needed to make such aggressive reductions.
You may wonder why the administration is firing refuge staff tasked with protecting Florida’s precious manatees when they need it most. Clearly “maximizing government efficiency” is not the answer. Indiscriminately firing the people who safeguard our manatee springs is not only inefficient, it hogties our wildlife agency from doing the important work to support manatee survival and recovery.
This is exactly why I sent a notice of intent to sue DOGE and the Fish and Wildlife Service for ongoing harassment of Florida manatees in the refuge. The government must adequately staff the refuge to stop the long-recognized harm to manatees, extend sanctuary boundaries and closures, or restrict those activities that are harassing and ultimately hurting Florida’s manatees.
The refuge remains critically important for the long-term survival of imperiled Florida manatees. Its warm-water springs and nearby submerged vegetation provide essential shelter and food that sustain about 20% of Florida’s manatee population. That number will only grow as industrial warm-water outfalls that currently shelter more than half of Florida manatees in the winter months begin to ramp down.
The refuge also provides incredible opportunities for passive viewing of these gentle giants, which boosts public appreciation for Florida’s amazing ecosystems and species. I want that to continue, just as I am sure you do.
It’s well past time to fix the refuge to protect our precious manatees. And that starts with adequate staffing.
Ragan Whitlock is a Florida-based staff attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity. Banner photo: A manatee in Crystal River (iStock image).
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