# 12 Amazing Facts About Manatees (Elephants Are Their Closest Relatives)

*Coastal waters and rivers of the Americas and West Africa · JUL 25 2026*

> Manatees are herbivorous marine mammals whose closest living relatives are elephants; they replace their teeth on a conveyor-belt system throughout life and eat up to 50 kg of aquatic plants a day.

Conveyor-belt teeth, a diet of 50 kg of plants a day, and the mermaid myth they probably started. Twelve facts.

## What are the key takeaways from this briefing?
- Manatees' closest living relatives are elephants — flipper toenails are a visible trace.
- Teeth form at the back and migrate forward on a conveyor-belt system throughout life.
- They eat up to 50 kg of aquatic plants a day and are fully herbivorous.
- Six neck vertebrae mean they cannot turn their heads independently of the body.
- Boat strikes and seagrass die-off are the two dominant modern threats.

## Twelve manatee facts, fact-checked

Manatees are sirenians — placid aquatic herbivores with a surprising family tree. Full profile in our [manatee guide](/wildlife-guides/manatee/).

### 1. Elephants are their closest relatives

Manatees, dugongs, elephants and hyraxes share a common ancestor. Toenails on the flippers are a visible trace of it.

### 2. Teeth move forward on a conveyor

Abrasive plants wear teeth down, so new molars form at the back and migrate forward — a system otherwise seen mainly in elephants.

### 3. They eat up to 50 kg of plants daily

Around a tenth of body weight in seagrass and freshwater vegetation.

### 4. They are entirely herbivorous

One of very few fully plant-eating marine mammals.

### 5. They probably started the mermaid myth

Columbus recorded sighting mermaids that were almost certainly manatees.

### 6. They have six neck vertebrae

One fewer than almost every other mammal, which means they cannot turn their heads and must rotate the whole body.

### 7. They surface every few minutes

Typically every three to five minutes, up to twenty when resting.

### 8. Cold kills them

Little insulating fat means water below about 20°C causes cold stress. Florida manatees gather at warm springs and power station outflows in winter.

### 9. Boat strikes are the major threat

Slow-moving surface breathers in busy waterways; most adults carry propeller scars, which researchers use to identify individuals.

### 10. Seagrass loss is the newer crisis

Water-quality-driven seagrass die-off has caused mass starvation events in Florida.

### 11. They can live over 60 years

Some individuals in managed care have exceeded that.

### 12. They are Vulnerable

Boat strikes, habitat loss, cold-water events and entanglement all limit recovery.

**[Read the full manatee wildlife guide](/wildlife-guides/manatee/)** for IUCN status, population context and sources — or **[donate to WARN](/donate/)** to help fund the partner teams protecting wildlife on the ground.

## What do people ask about this briefing?
### Are manatees related to elephants?
Yes. Manatees, dugongs, elephants and hyraxes all descend from a common ancestor. Manatees still have vestigial toenails on their flippers, and share the elephant's conveyor-belt tooth replacement system.

### What do manatees eat?
Manatees are herbivorous marine mammals whose closest living relatives are elephants; they replace their teeth on a conveyor-belt system throughout life and eat up to 50 kg of aquatic plants a day. The guide's ecology sections give the prey or forage detail behind that summary.

### Did manatees inspire the mermaid myth?
Very probably. Columbus recorded sighting mermaids on his voyages, and the descriptions match manatees rather than anything mythical. Their habit of holding a calf while surfacing may have reinforced the impression.

### Why are manatees threatened by cold?
They have little insulating fat, so water below about 20°C causes cold stress that can be fatal. Florida manatees gather at natural warm springs and power station outflows through winter, which makes them dependent on a small number of sites.

### What is the biggest threat to manatees?
Historically boat strikes — most adults carry propeller scars, which researchers use to identify individuals. More recently, water-quality-driven seagrass die-off has caused mass starvation events in Florida.

## Which sources does this briefing use?
- [IUCN Red List — Trichechus manatus](https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22103/9356917)
- [Smithsonian Ocean — Manatees](https://ocean.si.edu/ocean-life/marine-mammals)

Human-readable page: https://worldanimalrescuenetwork.org/newsroom/manatee-12-amazing-facts/