One of the world’s oldest known manatees has died, four months after being rescued from desolate conditions at the infamous Miami Seaquarium.
Officials from ZooTampa at Lowry Park announced the death of 65-year-old manatee Juliet on Sunday after exhibiting declining health conditions over the past week.
Juliet and her mate Romeo were rescued from the Miami Seaquarium in December after drone footage showing Romeo circling in a worse-for-wear pool went viral.
‘Juliet was a beloved animal, who captured the hearts of many worldwide. We would be contacted frequently by animal care professionals, veterinarians and even the general public who credit her for instilling their passion for these gentle sea cows,’ said Dr. Cynthia Stringfield, ZooTampa’s senior vice president of animal health, conservation, and education.
‘For more than four months, both Romeo and Juliet had successfully adapted to their new environments in the Zoo’s rehabilitation pools and were socializing with other manatees, Romeo continues to thrive.’
The Miami Seaquarium said Romeo and Juliet were ‘rescued in 1956’ and are ‘local celebrities’ at the aquarium where they had lived for 66 years.
Romeo was dubbed ‘America’s loneliest manatee’ after a viral video showed him alone in a tank while his partner, Juliet, with whom he shared multiple calves, was kept in a separate ‘celebrity’ tank on the main site.
Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava issued a lease termination to the troubled Seaquarium in March after the U.S. Department of Agriculture found it had ‘numerous and significant violations and defaults.’
The eviction deadline was set for Sunday, but Miami Seaquarium defied the order and is fighting Miami-Dade County in federal court, reported Local10 News.
The Seaquarium is seeking $35 million in damages and claiming the eviction was forced without a plan for the animals.
The Manatee Rescue & Rehabilitation Partnership successfully transported three manatees – Romeo, Juliet and Clarity – from Miami Seaquarium to SeaWorld Orlando and ZooTampa in December.
The transportation was a tremendous struggle due to the animals’ size, weight and health condition.
But accompanied by specialized vehicles and an experienced team of vets and animal care specialists, all three made the trip safely.
‘When Juliet arrived at the zoo there were many aspects of her overall health that were unknown. She was an unusually large animal, weighing 3,045 pounds and her age was estimated at over 65 years old, making her one of the oldest known manatees,’ said Stringfield.
Their relocation to ZooTampa was part of a bigger operation that state and federal wildlife officials say had been in planning for months between the government and Florida-wide private care facilities.
Video of Romeo swimming forlornly in his tank, shot by campaign group UrgentSeas, pans over a desolate area of the park before zooming in on the solitary figure, spinning in circles in the murky waters.
UrgentSeas co-founder Phil Demers claimed that Romeo had been kept alone in the tank in ‘Pompano pools’, which are closed to the public, since at least last April.
Romeo’s plight was picked up by 11-time World Surf League champ Kelly Slater who called for people to put pressure on the Florida aquarium to release him.
Slater told DailyMail.com: ‘I’m always confused and sad seeing these stories. For context, I don’t know how the manatee ended up in the aquarium or if there is a reason it can’t be returned to the wild but my thoughts on it are that manatees are very social creatures and very free, roaming large distances across the state of Florida.
‘They’re the gentlest creatures in the world and such a great and recognizable mammal in our state.
‘It seems the humane thing to do to return these animals to their rightful place in nature, along with cetaceans of all kinds which shouldn’t be in captivity at all unless terribly injured and unable to return to the wild and have quality of life,’ he said.
‘I grew up swimming with and admiring manatees my whole life and it would be a feel good story to see this manatee returned safely to live out its days in the wild.’
Demers said that Romeo had been kept ‘all alone’ in the ‘off-limits’ Pompano pools that are closed to the public.
He added: ‘Manatees are semi-social animals and suffer psychologically when not living in pairs or groups. But Romeo remains all alone. All the time.’
Manatees can live up to an estimated age of 60 in the wild, but it is possible for them to live longer in captivity.
In a report, the Department of Agriculture cited the Miami Seaquarium for alleged insufficient animal care and staffing problems – and slammed them for their treatment of Romeo.
The report said Romeo had been housed alone in his enclosure because the three other manatees he was living with were released back into the wild in the spring.
And despite numerous attempts to acquire another manatee the Seaquarium did not meet the requirements to do so.
The report noted: ‘Although numerous attempts have been made to acquire another manatee it was determined the facility did not yet meet the requirements to receive another animal.
‘Manatees are semi-social animals and do better medically and psychologically when they are housed in pairs or groups.’
In March 2022, the lease for the site was transferred to the Dolphin Company. Since then, the Department of Agriculture has issued a series of violation warnings, and findings of animals hurt and in distress.
One report accused the aquarium of issues with inadequate veterinary care, animal handling, facilities and critical separation.
Dolphins were found to have eaten concrete and zip ties, while one had broken ribs after an attack.
The report said the facility had ‘failed to provide proper equipment or services to ensure adequate veterinary care’ and failed ‘to maintain a marine mammal enclosure in good repair and protect the animals from injury.’
Romeo was being kept in the same Seaquarium in which Lolita the orca died in March this year.
Lolita was once dubbed the ‘loneliest whale in the world’ and died aged 57, just months before her scheduled retirement.
Experts and concerned individuals had long protested against Lolita’s conditions in captivity, including the size of her 80-foot long and 35-foot wide tank, the smallest of its kind in the US.
Just 10 years after Lolita arrived at the aquarium, her companion Hugo died of an aneurysm that was caused by repeated head trauma, earning her the title of the world’s loneliest whale.
Lolita was the oldest whale in captivity at the age of 56 and performed until 2022 when she was finally retired after falling ill.
This article by Rachel Bowman was first published by The Daily Mail on 22 April 2024. Lead Image: Officials from ZooTampa announced Juliet, one of the world’s oldest known manatees, has died.
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