According to the Cincinnati Zoo, Florida manatees are able to replace their front teeth since their back molars constantly grow. This process is necessary, since the manatees' front teeth--which are also molars--wear down from eating algae and seagrass over the years; Florida manatees almost eat 8 percent of their body weight on a daily basis. Florida manatees also have dense rib bones that serve as a form of ballast, allowing these animals to descend to sea floors with ease. These sea mammals are bottom feeders, so they spend much of their time at the bottom of the sea.
While male and female Florida manatees have many similar physical characteristics, both genders have different features, according to Sea World's Animal Facts. Females possess mammary glands underneath their armpits. The male Florida manatees' genitalia are in the middle of its torso, while female Florida manatees' genitalia are near its back flipper. In terms of maturity, males require 10 years before they reach adulthood and females evolve into adults after three years. Both male and female Florida manatees live approximately 50 to 60 years.
Typical adult male Florida manatees have a weight range of 800 to 1,300 lbs., while the range of the female gender is 400 to 900 lbs.. According to the Society for Marine Mammalogy, some manatees near Florida weigh nearly 3,600 lbs. Baby Florida manatees, also called "calves," weigh approximately 60 to 70 lbs.; their length is 3 to 4 feet. The length of adult manatees ranges from 10 to 13 feet long.
All Florida manatees have wrinkly skin with grayish coloration. However, some of the Florida manatees have brown or green spots; these spots are primarily seen on the animal's dorsal area, which is the result of algae growth. Florida manatees also have small hairs all over their body. Most of the manatee's hair, though, is near its nose and lips. The upper part of the Florida manatee's lips feature short whiskers.
Since they are mammals, Florida manatees are required to come to the surface of the water to breath; the manatees breath through two nostrils in their noses. According to National Geographic, these mammals must come up every three to four minutes to breath while they are swimming. However, Florida manatees can stay underneath the surface for much longer if they are resting. This animal swims with its two flippers, located near its pectoral region. These flippers also have nails, which help the animal forage for food and move on the ground. The Florida manatee's spatula-shaped tail enables the animal to accelerate and decelerate.