Florida's Friendly Manatees

Florida's friendly manatees photographed by Alexander Mustard Snorkellers approach an adult manatee at Three Sisters Spring, Crystal River, Florida. You might imagine that coming face to face with one of these enormous underwater mammals would cause some concern. However, the likelihood is that the rotund creature just wants you to scratch its belly while it floats around happily, as world-renowned underwater photographer Alex Mustard discovered. "Manatees live life at a slow pace, so when you swim with them you are forced to chill down to their speed," explained the 36-year-old from Hampshire. "They're just floating about in a sort of zen state. Then, when they come up to you and want you to scratch them, it is so exciting you get a real connection." Alex travelled to the west coast of Florida, close to Crystal River city, in February, where the animals congregate in the winter. Here, several freshwater springs attract the manatees when their normal ocean habitat becomes too cold. Alex, who has ventured all over the world photographing the many wonders of the deep, said: "Manatees are big and, if you don't stress them, very friendly, so they are easy to get close to the camera. The biggest surprise was their intelligence. If you give one a good scratch, it will remember and 30 minutes later you will feel a nudge in your side - and there is the same individual wanting another tickle. The babies are the most playful, and I think the adults are happy to have snorkellers entertain their energetic youngsters while they get some sleep." After so many years capturing the underwater beauty of some of the world's most exotic destinations, Alex says it is the waters around Britain which excite him the most. "Our own seas and rivers are a hard place to photograph because they are cold and usually murky, so for years I ignored them, preferring to travel to find conditions more conducive to producing pleasing images. But for the last 18 months I have been working on a British conservation photography project called 2020VISION, where a team of 20 photographers are documenting the importance of the wild places of Britain for both wildlife and the British people. It has made me appreciate our waters more than ever." A group of manatees wallow in shallow water in Crystal River An adult manatee scratches its head A lone Florida manatee in the Three Sisters Spring On a cold evening, large numbers of manatees (Trichechus manatus latirostrus) gather in Three Sisters Spring for the night Portrait of underwater photographer Alexander Mustard in Crystal River, Florida