ORLANDO (WHDH) - A pregnant manatee that was found off the coast of the coast of Cape Cod in September will be back in open waters Tuesday.
The manatee, named Washburn after the island where she was rescued, will be released into the wild in Florida this morning. Two weeks ago she was flown from Connecticut’s Mystic Aquarium to SeaWorld in Orlando, Florida.
Manatees are mammals and are sometimes referred to as “sea cows.” Dale Wolbrink, a spokeswoman for Mystic Aquarium, says it is very rare to see them as far north as New England.
The 800-pound Washburn was rescued on Sept. 22, as water temperatures were dropping below 67 degrees — too cold for it to survive.
A U.S. Coast Guard plane took off Tuesday morning from Groton, Connecticut, with the manatee.
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