Sarge is a male manatee rescued in Green Cove Springs in November 2013 for cold stress. He was 203 cm long and weighed 346 lbs at the time of rescue. He was transported to SeaWorld Florida for rehabilitation, and as of December 9, 2014, he was 230 cm long and weighed 715 lbs. Sarge was released at Blue Spring State Park on January 20, 2015 and weighed 750 lbs at the time.
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11/27/2015 08:47 AM
Among the group of animals that responded to the season's first cold front and showed up at Blue Spring the morning of 11/26/15, Sarge was seen socializing and participating in a mating herd by Cora Berchem (Save the Manatee Club), although we weren't immediately able to confirm it was him. After confirming that it was Sarge, and that he looked very good, his equipment was cut off and he was deemed a successful graduate of the program.
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06/11/2015 03:27 PM
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06/08/2015 09:30 AM
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06/07/2015 10:20 AM
Sarge’s tag stopped working on 6/05/15, and he was found via belt in Lake Dexter on Sunday morning participating in a mating herd with 10 other animals. Several large gators were in the immediate area growling and presenting their backs, so a tag exchange or re-tagging was not possible at the time.
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05/20/2015 12:32 PM
Sarge was milling and traveling by himself just north of Little Lake George on the east bank. In response to a brief alligator bite on his tag and the gator immediately letting the tag go, Sarge dove and traveled north, appearing to be fine. We anticipate seeing an increased visible presence of gators as it is mating season right now.
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05/11/2015 10:16 AM
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04/15/2015 12:47 PM
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04/03/2015 11:50 AM
He was seen feeding on tape grass on bottom on the southeast bank east of Murphy Creek. He was with 3 others, and one more animal was seen about 250 ft away as well. They stayed together and socialized after feeding, then milled north along the bank. I also talked with a family fishing in their boat, and their sons were telling me that their science teacher mentioned that rescued manatees are sometimes tagged and tracked. It’s great to know that our tagged animals are being mentioned in schools!
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03/31/2015 03:02 PM
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03/20/2015 02:02 PM
Sarge was observed by himself just north of Lake Dexter on the east bank out of channel. At first sighting he was possibly feeding on water lettuce and pennewort but unfortunately could not confirm. Then he traveled and milled north up the east bank, close to the bank, stopping by vegetation but again feeding could not be confirmed.
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03/08/2015 09:10 AM
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03/07/2015 04:45 PM
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02/25/2015 01:36 PM
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02/19/2015 11:00 AM
Some mats of floating vegetation had drifted in to the spring’s entrance from the river, and Sarge was feeding on them during the majority of the visual with three others--the first time he has been seen feeding since his release. Then he traveled back into the springs with the three towards the boil.
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02/14/2015 08:40 AM
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02/13/2015 12:19 PM
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02/10/2015 10:18 AM
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02/06/2015 08:25 AM
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01/27/2015 12:30 PM
Today he socialized at the boil of the spring with 8 other animals including Pixie, then milled around and lost his tag on the large snag at the boil. He traveled down the spring run toward the swim dock and was re-tagged there while socializing in another large group. Thanks very much to Cora from Save The Manatee Club and Diane for all their help with this!
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01/25/2015 11:30 AM
Sarge responded to the drop in temperature Saturday night and returned to Blue Spring late this morning. Once there he milled around at a relaxed pace, socializing in groups. He appears to now have a thin scratch on his left shoulder, but otherwise looks good.
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01/23/2015 01:57 PM
Data map is currently not present for Sarge.