Manatees and ABO kills

[Zuma]

During my travels in the wonderful, wet and wild state of Florida, I have always wondered
what it would have  been like to be a native hunter, hundreds, thousands of years ago.
Eskimos hunt and kill seals, walrus and whales. I thought the Sea Cow, Manatee fit the bill
 of the southern hunters. If they killed and utilized these sea going mammals, how did they do it?
Thrusting spear? Atatal? Bow? Net? or other?
Could points like these have been used?

[lostarrow]

 If I recall correctly ,they used harpoon points for seals and the like. These are large animals and can not be underestimated ,however docile they seem. One technique was to tie an air  bladder to the cord fastened to the harpoon point. They are mammals but can hold their breath for a very long time.The air bladder not only allows you to follow them for when they resurface , but the drag produced wore them down. I'm sure if you google it you will find all kind of info. Maybe "Pappy " will share his knowledge of gator hunting. I'm sure the same techniques could apply.

[Zuma]

Thanks lostarrow,
Good points. I think gators (better a croc) and the sea cow are somewhat similar in size and mystery.
Major difference is the reptile will come to you, to eat you. lol On land and an easier kill in my opinion.
No matter, both are formidable creatures to subdue.
Zuma

[mullet]

My Uncle told me when he was younger, back in the early thirties, they speared them. They still poach the Dugong in Central America and Northern Brazil. Also looking at the picture of the Gentleman swimming, that's good for a hefty fine from a Fish and Wildlife Officer. Touching is a no,no.

[Parnell]

I've often wondered how they weren't hunted out completely by natives.  Perhaps they new well enough to limit their harvests?  Dunno...

Figure it would be such an easy food source.

[Ryan_Gill_HuntPrimitive]

I've actually thought about this a lot in the past. If "I" was going to do it, I'd wait until they were well up in the spring fed rivers, like the weeki wachee here. crystal clear water and pretty far from the ocean... no where to go.  I'd have a couple positioned up and down stream with heavy nets with drag weights attached (just as a precaution to slow them down) but then I'd arrow/atlatl/spear it as many times as possible through the lungs. They can certainly hold their breath a long time, but probably not real long with blood filled lungs and their adrenaline going. If I was gang hunting, I'd have watchers and shooters lined up every 50  or so yards up and down stream. A team effort would be mandatory either way... no way you could drag one of those out of the water by yourself no could you use all the meat before spoiling without a lot of extra helping hands. I'd say a manatee could feed a small tribe for a decent amount of time.

[PrimitiveTim]

Last recorded hunt of a manatee in Florida was in the Indian River Lagoon by the Ramsey family back in the 50s.  They went out in a small boat and harpooned it.  It is said that the manatee drug them 10 miles before it died.  This is either bad shot placement or manatees are really freaking tough.  I'd guess that for natives the hard part would be retrieving the animal after it was harpooned and it would take several men all day to complete the hunt.  I've seen people bump into them on their kayaks and bumped into a few myself.  They are extremely powerful and fast when they think someone is trying to kill them.  Their skin is like elephant skin and very very thick.

Look at the picture,  That's some serious penetration to get all the way down to the lungs.

[Ryan_Gill_HuntPrimitive]

good info tim, thanks!  not that I will ever shoot one... cept for maybe after an apocalypse    but fun to know stuff

[Zuma]

Back in the day when the picture was taken there were no silly laws restricting the touching of the creatures.
You couldn't persue or annoy/harass them. This made sense. As you can see in the photo there is a cow and calf.
The calf started the encounter and played with the swimmer for half an hour. The mom came by to mostly make sure her calf was not in danger. I have a great respect for Manatee and would encourage law enforcement to do something about the props and nets. They are real threats to them.
They look into your soul. lol The manatee. The law looks into your wallet.
Zuma