Manatee Season at Florida Springs: Blue Spring’s Swim Season Ends as Manatees Move In
November is Manatee Awareness Month, and Florida's manatees are moving to warm water, the FWC says. At Blue Spring in Orange City, swim season ended November 14, day-use reservations are now required, and hundreds of manatees are expected in the 72-degree spring run through March.
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ENVIRONMENT · FLORIDA SPRINGS
Florida’s manatees are on the move. November is Manatee Awareness Month, and in a release dated November 2, 2026, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) reminded residents and visitors that manatees have begun their seasonal movements to warmer waters around the state — and that boaters are more likely to meet them on the way.
For Orlando, the nearest big winter refuge is Blue Spring State Park in Orange City, on the St. Johns River. The park’s swimming season ran April 1 to November 14 this year. From mid-November to March, Florida State Parks says, hundreds of manatees congregate in the spring run to seek shelter from the cold.
Why the springs matter now
“Manatees rely on warm water sites to survive the winter, seeking refuge at Florida’s springs, power plant discharge areas and other warm water sites when water temperatures drop below 68 degrees Fahrenheit,” said Ashley LaVere, the FWC’s Manatee Management Program Coordinator, in the commission’s November 2 release.
Blue Spring shows what a protected spring can do. According to Florida State Parks, researchers tracked 14 manatees in the spring run in 1970, two years before the park was established. By 2005, after years of park improvements and manatee protection, wintering numbers passed 200 — and by 2023 the count had reached a record 729. The spring’s water holds at about 72 degrees year-round.
What the FWC asks boaters to do
Manatees are hard to spot despite their size, the FWC says. The commission asks anyone heading out on a boat or personal watercraft to designate a lookout for snouts, backs, tails or pectoral flippers breaking the surface, or for manatee “footprints” — the circular patterns manatees leave moving below. Polarized glasses help, going slow helps, and manatee protection zones are not optional: they require boaters and personal watercraft users to slow down or stay out of certain areas, they are marked by waterway signs, and FWC law enforcement officers patrol state waters to enforce them. Zone maps are posted at MyFWC.com/MPZ. Boat strikes remain a major threat to manatees, the commission says.
Watching from shore or a boardwalk carries its own rule: manatees are a protected species, and it is illegal to harass, feed, disturb or harm them. The FWC asks viewers to bring binoculars and give the animals plenty of space — disturbing manatees at a warm-water site can drive them out into potentially life-threatening cold water.
Before you go to Blue Spring
This is the first manatee season under the park’s reservation rule. Effective July 15, 2026, Florida State Parks requires every day-use visitor to have a reservation to enter Blue Spring State Park. The park is open 8 a.m. to sunset, 365 days a year, at 2100 W. French Ave., Orange City, and the entrance fee listed on the park page is $6 per vehicle. One more notice for paddlers: effective November 2, 2026, the park’s French Landing boat ramp and its canoe and kayak rentals and launches are closed, with no reopening date posted.
Closer to home, the same cold-season logic applies at the springs Orlando visits most. Our Wekiwa Springs hub gathers the Citizen’s coverage of the Wekiva River springs, and our guide to Central Florida’s natural springs compares Wekiwa, Rock Springs and Blue Spring side by side. If a Wekiwa trip is on your calendar instead, read how Wekiwa’s reservations and capacity limits work before you drive.
If you see a manatee in trouble
Report an injured, distressed, sick or dead manatee promptly to the FWC’s Wildlife Alert Hotline at 888-404-FWCC (3922), the commission asks — and do not try to handle the animal yourself, which can injure both the manatee and you. More of this desk’s coverage is in the Environment archive.
Sources & notes
- Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission — news release, “November means manatees are on the move,” November 2, 2026 (seasonal movement, 68-degree threshold, boating and viewing guidance, hotline). All FWC statements in this story are drawn from that release.
- Florida State Parks (Florida DEP) — Blue Spring State Park page, checked November 15, 2026 (swimming season April 1–November 14; mid-November-to-March manatee congregation; 1970/2005/2023 manatee counts; day-use reservations effective July 15, 2026; hours, $6-per-vehicle fee and address; French Landing closure effective November 2, 2026).
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