SNOOTY, OLDEST FLORIDA MANATEE IN CAPTIVITY AT 69, DIES AFTER BIRTHDAY

Miami — Snooty, the longest living manatee in captivity, died Sunday, a day after a huge party to celebrate his 69th birthday, according to the South Florida Museum. “Snooty was found in an underwater area only used to access plumbing for the exhibit life support system. Early indications are that an access panel door that is normally bolted shut had somehow been knocked loose and that Snooty was able to swim in,” the museum said in a press release. “Snooty’s habitat undergoes a daily visual inspection and there were no indications the previous day that there was anything amiss.”