Gina the Manatee, Eleuthera – expectant mother (BMMRO)
BAHAMAS MANATEES: GINA’S CALF NEEDS A NAME!
Earlier this year I posted the welcome news that Bahamas manatee Gina was beyond any doubt pregnant. You can read about it HERE. Gina has been living for some time in Eleutheran waters, under regular observation by the BMMRO. At the turn of the year, she was re-tagged in Harbour Island, Eleuthera, when her pregnancy was discovered. I promised to give an update and this is a perfect moment. Gina’s calf was safely born and is growing fast. The pair have spent a lot of time in and around Spanish Wells, Eleuthera. Recently they have begun to move further afield, and there have been several sightings with some great photos shared on FB and in particular on Felice Leanne Knowles’s terrific BAHAMAS MANATEE CLUB page, some of which are included here duly credited.
Gina’s calf is currently just called “Gina’s calf”. Its gender is unknown, and it will take a close inspection from below to ascertain from its… I don’t have to go on with this, do I? The point being that the chosen name will need to be unisex because it may take a while until there is sufficient development of the… I don’t have to go on with this either, do I? Let’s see the nameless calf at once! Details of the competition at the end of this post…
Gina with her newborn calf, July 27 (BMMRO) (note apparent prop scars on Gina)
Spanish Wells, October 26 (π Junea Pinder / BMMRO) 
Gregory Town, November 5 (Lynne Hirzel / BMMRO)
Hatchet Bay, November 13 (π Jeffrey Louis / BMMRO) 
November 18: Now you see it… (π Norma Roberts / BMMRO)
…and now you don’t…
THE COMPETITION
ATTENTION TEAM MANATEES!!! Due to a consistent influx of sighting information and photos, we would like to add Gina’s calf to our catalogue. It would be nice for it to have a NAME!! We cannot monitor these manatees without your help and it is only fitting that YOU name the manatee. The deadline for name suggestions is November 29th, 2015 and the winning name will be revealed on November 30th, 2015. The member with the winning name suggestion will receive an official manatee club T-Shirt!!
RULES
1. The name must be submitted on the Club Page Bahamas Manatee Club as an individual post – DO NOT comment your suggestion.
2. The name must be unisex – we do not know the sex of the calf yet.
3. A meaning or description must be submitted along with the name.
4. Please do not submit any derogatory or explicit “names.”
5. If you are submitting on behalf of a child who is not on Facebook, please add their name to the post as well.
Spread the word! Tell your friends and families to join the club and help us with a name!! The name will be selected on it’s meaning or description as it relates to marine mammals OR The Bahamas. The amount of “likes” per post will also go into consideration during the selection process.
Regretful Note: I made the stupid mistake of being amongst the very first to post my suggestion, meaning that after a day or two I’d get no likes at all, as more people got involved and my offering sank slowly. But there’ve been plenty of much better ones since, so probably just as well!
For more information about West Indian manatees, you can visit the MANATEE PAGE. There are several links there to specific manatee stories.
Finally, here is a great manatee map that Felice has recently made, showing which of the increasing number of manatees is where at the moment. Just think, only 4 or 5 were known about four years back. Now look!
Credits: primary founts of Bahamas manatee knowledge Felice & BMMRO; Photos BMMRO, Junea Pinder, Lynne Hirzel, Jeffrey Louis, Norma Roberts
ROLLING HARBOUR ABACO 
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Oh RH, I am so very happy and excited for the birth of this baby manatee. They have become so rare, it is incredibly uplifting to know and see living proof of one more manatee on this earth. Gina and her baby are in good hands; thanks so much for the great news and for sharing the photos of these wonderful photographers. 😀 😀
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