The manatee was recently designated Alabama’s state marine mammal. Help support research about these gentle, charismatic creatures by purchasing a distinctive Mobile Manatees license plate, which was approved on March 10 by the Alabama Legislative Oversight Committee.

The cost of this beautiful plate is $50; $41 is tax-deductible and will go directly to fund research by the Mobile Manatees Sighting Network (MMSN), a network launched in spring 2007 by Dr. Ruth Carmichael, senior marine scientist at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab, to provide a centralized location to report local manatee sightings and to investigate how manatees use fringe habitats such as Alabama waters.

The state needs to receive 1,000 commitments to produce this plate. You can commit to purchase the plate at any local DMV or go to http://manatee.disl.org and download the application. The MMSN will visit the DMV for you.

MMSN researchers hope that the license plate will help bring much-needed attention to manatees in local waters. Since boat collisions are the primary cause of death for manatees, increased awareness of the presence of manatees in Alabama waters will reduce the chance of harmful interactions between boats and these slow, gentle creatures.

For more information, call the MMSN at 1-866-493-5803.