Trapped marine mammal coaxed out of river

UNITED STATES

IT TOOK some sweet talk, affectionate chin scratching and a net yesterday to draw Lil’ Joe, the wayfaring, celebrity manatee, out of the river where he had been trapped for weeks and into the care of rescuers, with whom he has spent most of his life.

The 23-year-old Florida native, first taken in as a newborn orphan and raised in zoos and aquariums for more than two decades, has now been rescued twice since experts decided he knew enough to survive in the wild and set him free early last year along the St Johns River.

Yesterday’s recapture was triggered by Lil’ Joe’s reappearance last month in the Little Econlockhatchee River, some distance away and far off the beaten path for the marine mammals. His identity was a mystery for weeks, until a wildlife volunteer spotted a man-made brand – R5 – on his back.

Biologists think Lil’ Joe was able to swim that far up the normally shallow river in June, when it was swollen with tropical rain.

Unlike a previous attempt to capture him, when R5 stayed hidden, he seemed happy to have company yesterday when state biologist Ann Spellman found him.

During his years in captivity, Lil’ Joe had grown large, as much as 3 metres long and weighing as much as 885 kilograms. However, he appeared to be underweight when found yesterday. ‘‘He’s very approachable,’’ Spellman said. ‘‘It’s almost like he wanted to come back into captivity.’’

At first, only a few rescuers got into the water, hoping to ease a stretcher beneath Lil’ Joe and then, with help, lift him from the river.

But Lil’ Joe seemed to have a change of heart and slipped out of reach. More rescuers got into the river, with a curtain-like net, and strung it out in a half-circle.

Lil’ Joe held back, his nostrils flaring just above the water’s surface as nearly 30 people watched in silence. The rescuers pulled the net into three-quarters of a circle. When the manatee hesitated, Zak Johnson, a Sea to Shore Alliance research assistant, was able to get close enough to scratch Lil’ Joe’s chin and encourage him to come closer.

One of the rescuers then called ‘‘all hands on deck,’’ and within minutes Lil’ Joe was wrapped in netting and cradled in the stretcher.

Heavy lifting gear was used to load Lil Joe into a SeaWorld rescue truck and he was soon on his way to a meal and a veterinarian’s checkup.

Photos: ORLANDO SENTINEL Slippery customer: Manatee Lil’ Joe is rescued from the Little Econlockhatchee River in Orlando, Florida, a long way from the mammal’s normal habitat. He had been trapped in the river for weeks after being freed into another Florida river early last...

Adventurous: Lil’ Joe, an approachable if somewhat wayward manatee.