Manatees appear in aquariums primarily as rescued animals undergoing rehabilitation. The ethical tension between temporary care for injured individuals and long-term display raises important welfare questions about this gentle aquatic mammal.
Manatee welfare in aquariums sits in an ethically distinct category from most zoo animals because many individuals are genuinely non-releasable due to injury, disability, or habituation. For these animals, appropriate captive care is a genuine welfare necessity rather than an ethically questionable choice. The welfare considerations specific to captive manatees include thermal management (warm water is non-negotiable), adequate dietary provision without obesity, opportunities for natural movement despite limited pool size, and appropriate social grouping. Manatees are not deeply social but benefit from conspecific contact. The risk of habituation to humans — which reduces the fitness of otherwise healthy animals for release — must be carefully managed in rehabilitation settings. Animals that could be released must not be held for display purposes. The broader welfare challenge is at the population level: reducing boat strikes, managing cold-snap mortality, and addressing water quality degradation are the primary interventions for wild manatee welfare.