Welcome to the Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge and the Kings Bay Manatee Refuge. You are
among the thousands of yearly visitors privileged to enter our natural springs,
home of the Florida manatee. Your awareness of our rules and recommendations is essential to
the protection of manatees and their ecosystem. It is your responsibility to learn and understand
these rules prior to recreating in the refuge. Between November and April Kings Bay is home to
the largest aggregation of manatees in a natural environment in the world. To protect manatees from
harm, harassment, and disturbance the Crystal River National Wildlife Refuge and manatee sanctuaries
were created in parts of King's Bay. In addition all of Kings Bay has been designated as a federal
manatee protected area, with special manatee protection regulations in place year round.
The Florida manatee is protected by the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972,
the federal Endangered Species Act of 1973, and the Florida Manatee sanctuary Act of 1978.
Violations of these statutes may result in fines of up to one hundred thousand dollars
and or one year in jail. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recommends that all visitors practice
passive observation when viewing manatees. Passive observation means calmly observing manatees from
a distance and from the surface of the water and not initiating any contact with the manatee.
In addition to practicing passive observation, visitors should not approach manatees,
particularly those found resting. During the winter months manatees come to the springs
to stay warm and spend the majority of their time resting around King's Bay.
Undisturbed access to the springs is critical to the manatee's survival. Resting manatees can be
found near the water's surface, partially submerged in the water column, or laying on the water bottom.
They remain relatively still while resting, but may make some slight movements.
For example, manatees may remain almost motionless before moving to the surface to breathe,
then returning to the original resting position. This means that resting manatees
may be found moving while resting, and it is your responsibility not to disturb them.
Recreating close to manatees is a privilege that comes with serious personal responsibility.
In the next few minutes, the rules that prevent manatee harassment will be shown,
followed by additional recommendations that will improve the quality of your experience.
Manatee sanctuaries provide a safe area for manatees to rest
without disturbance from humans. During the cold winter months. Manatee sanctuaries are
designated by large orange and white buoys, stating closed area. All activities are prohibited inside.
Visitors must stay out of all posted manatee sanctuaries and all other posted closed areas.
Additional vessel exclusion areas include the King Spring swim area,
aka the keyhole, which is closed to all vessels, including kayaks canoes and paddle boards.
Become familiar with the following guidance and use this information when paddling in Kings Bay.
By paying attention and following the tips below, paddlers should be able to avoid
collisions with manatees and prevent any disturbance to resting manatees.
Keep an active watch for manatees and practice safe paddling when in Kings Bay.
Because paddlers sit low to the water, paddlers may have difficulty seeing and
avoiding collisions with manatees if not careful. Wearing polarized sunglasses will
improve your ability to see manatees in the water and should be worn at all times.
When paddling, look for manatee signs. These may include a swirl in the surface of the water,
observing a snout, part of a back or tail, or hearing a manatee break the surface to breathe.
What should you do if you see a manatee? When you see a manatee ahead, stop or slow down
to prevent disturbance to the manatee and for your personal safety. Maintain a safe distance
from manatees. Do not chase manatees or paddle over manatees and avoid floating or hovering over them.
Use the surface paddling technique while paddling gently when around manatees.
This will reduce the disturbance noise and splash created by typical paddle strokes.
When paddling around spring areas, where manatees congregate, your vessel speed
should be at its total minimum. This will allow you to react in time to prevent a disturbance.
You should watch where you place the paddle on every stroke, in case there are manatees rising
to breathe or resting at the surface. Always be ready to stop, back up, or steer when in the springs.
Mating herds can occur at any time throughout the year. These animals are not aggressive
towards humans, but they are quite active and can easily flip a small vessel like a kayak.
If you find yourself near a mating herd the safest thing to do is avoid the group.
If the animals approach remain calm and surface paddle away from the herd.
Don't reach from your vessel to touch manatees or try to attract manatees to the side of the vessel.
When preparing to anchor, find a safe area to anchor in and always be considerate of other
boats and people in the water. Anchor far enough away from no entry area boundaries
to prevent your boat from drifting or being blown into these areas by the wind.
Never tie up to signs buoys and other navigational structures or to trees or vegetation in King's Bay.
When anchoring, slowly lower your anchor. Never throw it into the water. This is for the safety
of any manatees and people in the water that might be around your vessel. Dropping an anchor
into the water isn't just a hazard, but it can also scare manatees away from your boat.
All swimmers snorkelers and divers must stay within 100 feet of a dive flag.
Be careful and enter the water slowly to keep from splashing scaring manatees and
stirring up the bottom. When you stir up the bottom, it's hard to see in the water.
Please remember if you are getting into the water to view, photograph,
or video manatees, you must first watch the manatee manners video for swimmers
regulations, please call the Florida fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's wildlife alert
hotline at 1-888-404-3922. Thank you for taking the time to review these regulations and guidelines.
Please remember that Kings Bay is a community shared by manatees and people,
so be respectful of homeowners, businesses, and manatees during your visit. The U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service wants both you and the manatees to have a safe experience. With your help we can
protect this critical manatee area, so it can be shared with future generations. For more
information about manatee protection within Kings Bay visit us online at www.fws.gov/crystal river