when were manatees put on the endangered list
1966
title: Manatee text: common. In January 2016, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed that the West Indian manatee be reclassified from an "endangered" status to "threatened" as improvements to habitat conditions, population growth and reductions of threats have all increased. The proposal will not affect current federal protections. As of February 2016, 6,250 manatees were reported swimming in Florida's springs. Manatees were traditionally hunted by indigenous Caribbean people. When Christopher Columbus arrived in the region, hunting was already an established trade, although this is less common today. The primary hunting method was for the hunter to approach in a dugout canoe, offering title: Save the Manatee Club text: as endangered. On March 30, 2017, FWS issued its final rule to downgrade the status of the West Indian manatee from endangered to threatened under the ESA. The rule affects both the Florida and Antillean subspecies and was pursued despite strong scientific and legal evidence that shows the downlisting of manatees is not warranted at this time. SMC believes the FWS decision failed to adequately consider data from 2010 to 2016, during which time manatees suffered from unprecedented mortality events linked to habitat pollution, dependence on artificial warm water sources, and record deaths from watercraft strikes. SMC is currently active title: Manatee conservation text: fine of $500 and/or six months of jail time for molesting or killing a manatee. In accordance with the Endangered Species Preservation Act of 1966, an act of Congress designed to list endangered animal species and offer them limited protection, the manatee became one of 78 original species listed as being threatened with extinction. There are currently more than 1300 species on this list. On March 11, 1967 federal efforts to protect the manatee began when the United States Fish and Wildlife Service listed the manatee as endangered. In 1972, the manatee was designated a marine mammal protected under the title: Manatee conservation text: manatees, develop oil spill contingency plans, and increase public education. In 1979, Florida Governor Bob Graham made November Manatee Awareness Month, and the first state-designated protection zones were established. The year 1980 saw Congress allocate $100, 000 to the Marine Mammal Commission and the development of the initial Federal Manatee Recovery Plan by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service. In 1981 Bob Graham and Jimmy Buffett formed the Save the Manatee Committee, the precursor of the Save the Manatee Club, which sought to protect manatees and their habitats. Both the Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Endangered Species Act title: Manatee text: the manatee's status from endangered to threatened in January 2016 after more than 40 years of the manatee's being classified as on the endangered. Fossil remains of Florida manatee ancestors date back about 45 million years. The freshwater Amazonian manatee ("T. inunguis") inhabits the Amazon River and its tributaries, and never ventures into salt water. They are found in coastal marine and estuarine habitats, and in freshwater river systems along the west coast of Africa from the Senegal River south to the Cuanza River in Angola. They live as far upriver on the Niger River as Koulikoro in Mali, 2,000