Crystal River , Florida ( CNN ) -- With the utmost care and a healthy dose of respect , Monica Ross brought the pontoon boat to a crawl , shut its engine down , and asked for quiet . She was careful not to disturb the small antenna , which floated on the surface of the Crystal River marking the location of Coral , an 800 pound manatee . `` She is in a nice , quiet cove . Perfect spot to be resting , '' said Ross , a marine biologist with Sea to Shore Alliance . `` Nice and protected ... for now , '' she said . For now . These are uncertain days on the Crystal River , where boat tours take folks out to see the sea creatures , and where people can swim with them . Knowing where these endangered manatees are will help marine biologists , if Deepwater Horizon oil makes its way into these waters where about 1,000 manatees reside . `` We do know that the oil is toxic and depending on how weathered it is , it can have a lot of harmful effects if manatees come in contact with it , '' said Patrick Rose , executive director of Save the Manatee Club . `` Everything from coating their skin to getting in their eyes , to being ingested ... We do n't know specifically because it 's not been documented ... never happened as far as I know , '' he said . Is there oil near you ? Share your story . In winter , the gentle creatures -- sometimes called `` sea cows '' because of their underwater bucolic nature but actually more closely related to elephants -- congregate in the warm waters of the rivers , estuaries and springs along the Florida Gulf Coast . But in summer , manatees frequently leave the close confines of their winter spas and spread out along the Gulf Coast to Alabama , Mississippi and Louisiana and around the Florida Keys up the Atlantic coast . With the population more widespread , would-be rescuers face a difficult task . Long the victims of accidental boat strikes and careless boaters , the West Indian manatee population in the Gulf of Mexico stands at about 5,000 , experts believe . This past winter 's extended cold wiped out almost 10 percent of their number . And while everyone is hoping for the best , federal and state officials as well as environmental groups are planning for the worst . The U.S . Fish and Wildlife Service is the lead agency protecting manatees and other wildlife from the oil . `` We do n't know how detrimental it will be if they inhale it , if they ingest it , if they 're foraging in areas where sea grass has been oiled , '' said Nicole Adimey , the manatee oil spill response coordinator with the U.S . Fish and Wildlife Service . `` We have no idea how that 's going to impact them , '' she said . The Fish and Wildlife Service says that as its staff monitors the flow of the black crude across the Gulf , they will use aerial flights to monitor manatees and other wildlife . They hope to have about 72 hours to respond to save manatees unknowingly swimming in the path of the oil -- including physically moving these mammals , which can reach 10 feet long and weigh 1,200 pounds . Rescue teams are staging gear and will be ready to move in if necessary to try and capture manatees in distress . But rescuing large numbers of manatees has never been done before . Is it realistic to capture large numbers of the sometimes uncooperative mammal ? `` I do n't know the answer to that question but we 're going to move as many as we possibly can , '' said Adimeyr . `` If we had to move dozens , and it was a situation where we needed to move dozens , then I think we 've been assured that we can get the resources , the extra hands that we need to do that , '' she said . Adimey said that if manatees come into contact with oil , they will be cleaned with dish soap to break it up and to clean the surface of their bodies . They will be transported to one of two de-oiling stations -- the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas in New Orleans , Louisiana , and the Institute for Marine Mammals Studies , in Gulfport , Mississippi . Additional facilities in Florida include the Homosassa Springs State Wildlife Park , Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa and the Miami Seaquarium . Once medically cleared , the animal will be transported to a long-term holding facility at Homosassa Springs State Wildlife Park just south of the Crystal River Preserve , where many manatees have found a haven . According to the federal plan , no manatees will be released back into the wild until the threat of oil contamination is over . And even then , experts hope the seagrass beds and vegetation that manatees eat are n't destroyed by the oil . Experts say they have a large network of people working together in partnerships , but accounting for every situation , and every scenario is doubtful . `` Capturing , rescuing hundreds of manatees , it 's never been done , '' said Patrick Rose of Save the Manatee . `` We would lose manatees , I believe , if those kinds of numbers of manatees are involved . ''
Experts estimate manatee population in Gulf at about 5,000 . Officials , groups planning for the worst if oil encroaches . Rescue efforts could include cleaning manatees , physically moving them . Comment: