This browser does not support the Video element.
Glitter-filled floats pose threat to wildlife
Kailey Tracy reports
TAMPA, Fla. - The manatees are a favorite at ZooTampa.
"We care for manatees, and we rehabilitate them in hopes to send them back home," said Tiffany Burns, the senior director of Animal Programs at the zoo.
ZooTampa has 18 manatees right now. Burns said the animals are already up against so much, and now, she’s worried about something else that can harm them: Glitter.
READ: What to do if you’re caught in a rip current
"We certainly don’t need to add anything into their environment," she said. "We love glitter, but we hope that everyone keeps it out of the water and keeps it out of the animals’ environment."
She’s talking about glitter-filled innertubes. They’re cute and great for the pool, but they’re not great for the wildlife in our waters if they pop.
"Manatees and other animals can then ingest them," said Cora Berchem, the director of multimedia for the Save the Manatee Club. "So, especially manatees, are extremely curious animals, and they like to check everything out with their snouts. So, for them, it's pretty much impossible to tell whether that's a tasty piece of grass or vegetation or whether that's a piece of plastic. And then once they have ingested that, that can cause some serious health issues for them or can even lead to death if it gets trapped in their intestines or their stomach, and it cannot be digested."
Berchem said one of the Club’s volunteers at Blue Spring State Park recently warned them about the inner tubes after spending hours cleaning up one that popped.
"I want to be proactive right now and try to make sure the manatees are not exposed to this new threat of ingesting these glitter things," Berchem said.
Berchem and Burns said the glitter and plastic can also threaten other animals and the water quality in general.
"Glitter is small. It kind of goes everywhere, and it can be consumed by the manatee just like any plastic. Unfortunately, that can be as it accumulates detrimental to an animal," Burns said.
"Be aware of what you're putting into the environment. If you're going to use a float, don't use one with glitter that might pop and send plastic into the environment. Certainly clean up anything that you bring with you," Burns said.
Burns and Berchem said it’s bound to be a busy boating weekend, so if you’re on the water, watch out for manatees and other wildlife.