Save the Manatee Club in need of manatee observers at Blue Spring State Park

Central Florida is home to an abundance of manatees and it takes a village to keep them all safe.

The Save the Manatee Club, in partnership with Blue Spring State Park, Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute and Volusia County, is in need of volunteers to be manatee observers.

The volunteer program operates from March to November at Blue Spring State Park because that is “swim season” when park visitors may come in contact with manatees.

The volunteers are there to “help prevent manatee harassment and to educate visitors about proper behavior around manatees.

Two mandatory training sessions are scheduled at Blue Spring State Park on March 5 and March 14 at 10 a.m. for two to three hours.

If a volunteer would like to partake from a kayak, they must attend an in-park training session and complete an online boating safety exam even if this isn’t their first time volunteering.

To sign up, email cberchem@savethemanatee.org with your preferred training date and whether you’d like a kayak training session. Click here for more information.