The World of The Dugong ; The Amazing Sea Cowg
Dugongs. Three Varieties on ATheme!
Did you know there are three varieties on the manatee theme? There’s theAmazonian from South America, the West Indian species and the African manatee. TheAfrican manatee lives in warm salt and fresh waters along the coast, whichbrings us to the Red Sea.
Dugongs. So large, so big. AndOh So Sweet And Oh So Harmless!
So meet the manatee, also more familiarly known as the dugong in the RedSea region in Egypt. It conjures up visions of a prehistoric sea cow. It’slarge. It’s big. It’s lazy. It’s slow. But it’s also oh so peaceful, sweet andabsolutely not aggressive.
Dugongs. The Aquatic Hoovers
The dugong doesn’t have any real enemies. Urban legend has it there areno crocodiles in the Red Sea because they have too much respect for the dugong.It’s a fascinating to see a dugong hoveringover beds of seagrass in slow-motion. Because that’s where you will finddugongs, where sea grass beds and patches are present in abundance. Mind you,our greyish marine herbivores aren’t short of daily absorbing some 50 kilogramsof aquatic vegetation, such as sea plants and grass, for breakfast, lunch anddinner.
Dugongs. Waiting For You AtAbu Dabbab!
One of the best places to spot dugongs in the wild and their naturalenvironment is at Ab Dabbab Beach in Marsa Alam. As plump and chubby as thedugong may seem, it effortlessly glides through the waters of Abu Dabbab Beach.The majority of Red Sea dugong sightings have been in shallow sheltered watersoff the coast at Abu Dabbab. You are likely to have a fair chance spotting themwhen you go out on a guided snorkelling trip with a zodiac from Abu DabbabBeach.
Dugongs. Oh The Sheer Size AndWeight!
Dugongs can stay under water for a short period of time but they rely onoxygen to breathe. This is why it surfaces every three to five minutes , butnot when it is enjoying her beauty sleep, usually lasting some twenty minutes.
A fully grown dugong measures some four metres in length and can weighup to almost 600 kilo’s.
Fact
The manatee is not related to any other marine animals. Their closestliving relatives is the elephant
Fact
Dugongs never go on land, but, like other sea mammals, they rely onoxygen to breathe
Fact
Dugongs are also known as seacows. Is it because they move slowly and eat sea grass?.
Fact
Dugongs are able to shed their teeth and grow new ones throughout theirlives