Scientists search for seasonal manatees

MOBILE, Ala. (AP) - Researchers are asking fishermen boaters and beachgoers to help look for the estimated 12 to 25 manatees that summer in Mobile Bay and the Mobile-Tensaw Delta.

Dauphin Island Sea Lab scientists will be joined in coming days by about six experts from Florida as they search the delta and bay in an airplane, three boats and on foot.

The search is part of the Mobile Manatee Sighting Network's ongoing study of the seasonal manatee population. Scientists say that population has grown in recent years.

One of the goals is to identify the Alabama habitats the endangered species favors so they can be conserved and boaters can be warned to watch for the slow-moving manatees.