In April, Hugh the manatee died at 38 years old at Sarasota’s Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium.
This week, Mote revealed details on Hugh’s last day following the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Marine Mammal Pathobiology Laboratory Institute’s necropsy report — or animal autospy — was released.
The necropsy report said “Hugh died from a 14.5 centimeter rip in his colon caused by a sexual encounter with,” his male brother, Buffett, ABC7 WWSB-TV reported.
“The United States Department of Agriculture said Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium failed to act to protect Hugh which lead to his death,” ABC7 reported.
Staff at Mote Marine noticed a behavior change in Hugh on April 29, and monitored the animal before he became unresponsive.
ABC7 reported the USDA said, “facility representatives, employees observed high intensity sexual behavior between two adult male manatees, which resulted in rectal penetration of the smaller male, at approximately 10 a.m. Shortly after this interaction, employees collected a fecal sample from the smaller male and confirmed the presence of fresh blood.
“The sexual behavior continued throughout the day with periods of rest between high intensity interactions and occasional penetration. At approximately 5:15 p.m., the larger male was observed penetrating the smaller male again. When the larger male swam away, the smaller male was seen unresponsive at the bottom of the pool. It was confirmed that he had passed.”
Mote Marine posted details of Hugh’s final day on Facebook.
It reads in part:
“On the day of Hugh’s passing, Hugh and Buffett engaged in natural, yet increased, mating behavior observed and documented in manatees both in managed care and in the wild. This was the first time such heightened mating behavior was witnessed between the two manatees. However, each year, like other male manatees in both the wild and in managed care, Hugh and Buffett would exhibit approximately two months of seasonal behavioral changes including, but not limited to, an increase in sexual behavior.
The manatees were under heightened observation throughout the day and the animal care team was in constant close communications with, and following the direction of, the attending veterinarians throughout the day.
Hugh and Buffett were both observed initiating and mutually seeking interactions from each other throughout the day and there were no obvious signs of discomfort or distress such as listing, crunching, or active avoidance that would have triggered a need for intervention. Following the direction of the veterinarians, distraction rather than physical separation was chosen because separation has previously caused undue anxiety and negative effects in both manatees. In an effort to redirect the manatees’ attention and decrease undesirable behaviors, animal care staff used positive reinforcement tools such as high value rewards and enrichment that had previously been successful.”
The aquarium also said the USDA had performed its annual inspection a week before the incident, and the inspector said the facility was a “gold standard” for others.
Hugh was born at Miami’s Seaquarium and came to Mote Marine, located on City Island near Longboat Key and St. Armand’s Circle, in 1996 from ZooTampa.
“Hugh was a manatee ambassador along with his brother Buffett, where they were the world’s only manatees to participate in voluntary, detailed behavioral research designed to aid manatee conservation,” Mote wrote in a Facebook post after Hugh’s death.
Hugh’s death came less than six years after Snooty, the world’s oldest manatee in captivity, drowned at the South Florida Museum, now known as the Bishop Museum of Science and Nature, in Bradenton shortly after celebrating his 69th birthday.