Snooty the Manatee had just celebrated his 69th birthday, making him the world’s oldest known Manatee. He tragically passed away in a terrible accident, getting caught in a maintenance hatch at the South Florida Museum.
Chief Executive of South Florida Museum, Brynne Anne Besio, announced in a statement that the team is devastated by the passing of Snooty.
“We’re reviewing what happened and will be conducting a full investigation. Snooty was such a unique animal and he had so much personality that people couldn’t help but be drawn to him.”
As you can imagine, I – and our staff, volunteers and board members – considered him a star. We all deeply mourn his passing.”
The South Florida Museum’s Facebook page is a painful reminder of just how close the death of Snotty coincided with his 69th birthday celebrations and the announcement of Snooty as the official mascot for the Museum.
It’s reported that Snooty’s body was found in an underwater area, “only used to access plumbing for the exhibit life support system.”
The Museum will be closed while staff investigate precisely what happened to snooty, but all other manatees who shared Snooty’s habitat are reportedly fine.
Snooty, or “baby Snoots”, is recorded as the first birth of a manatee in human care, all the way back in 1948 at the Miami Aquarium and Tackle Company.
His life is noted as a long and happy one, in which he greeted more than 1 million visitors and was a instrumental in countless scientific research programs looking to better understand Manatees.
A terribly sad day for his friends and fans around the world.
