ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, July 20, 1996 TAG: 9607220060
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-2 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: BEAUFORT, N.C.
SOURCE: Associated Press
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has lost track of Chessie, a manatee it had tracked since he turned up in the Chesapeake Bay two years ago.
The manatee slipped free of his radio collar while cruising the Intracoastal Waterway near Beaufort two days before Hurricane Bertha hit the North Carolina coast.
The latest update on the quirky travels of the marine mammal placed Chessie around Morehead City July9 on what appeared to be another summer journey toward cooler waters. Then the storm hit.
A biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Gainesville, Fla., was not worried.
``Unfortunately, the transmitter broke free before the storm, but we don't anticipate any problems,'' James Reid said. ``The storm was strong but not severe, and these animals are pretty adept at surviving in the water.''
Reid's guess is that Chessie holed up in a harbor somewhere while the storm raged and then resumed his yearly migration.
``We expect that Chessie is fine,'' Reid said. ``He is probably continuing his 10-to 20-mile per day travel rate as he works his way toward the Chesapeake Bay.''
The 1,200-pound manatee gained public attention in 1994 when he was captured in the Chesapeake Bay, far from his normal Florida habitat.
Europeans who arrived in the Chesapeake Bay in the 16th century reported seeing manatees, but the mammals have been sighted more frequently in North Carolina and Virginia in recent years. The increase may reflect a recent expansion of their range.
LENGTH: Short : 39 linesby CNB