The Florida manatee is actually a subspecies of the West Indian manatee and is a member of the class: Mammalia, order: Sirenia, family: Trichediae and has the scientific name; Trichechus manatus latirostris. These enormous animals are native "to the mid-Atlantic region of the United States, through the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, south to coastal parts of northeastern and east-central South America" ​​("West Indian Manatee" ). These enormous aquatic animals can live to be over 50 years old and reach sexual maturity between three and five years of age and produce only one calf every two years. These animals feed on aquatic vegetation and can consume up to fifteen percent of their body weight in a single day. Manatees are, "primarily after being broken down by the teeth, salivary glands begin to aid in digestion. In the West Indian manatee, "the submaxillary salivary glands are prominent, but the sublingual glands are small" (Berta 346). The manatee has taste buds that occur on the bumps of the tongue and have no tonsils. According to Dr. Bobrin's PowerPoints lecture, being a herbivore, some of the saliva produced is amylase, which initiates the degradation of the four components of the large intestine; , the colon, the rectum and finally the anus Although it varies from species to species, the Florida manatee has a cecum This is a site where fermentation occurs where the ileum and colon meet the colon, and then the rectum. This is the last part of the large intestine and is, for the most part, a storage area for waste such as feces. It should be noted that increased absorption of water occurs here as it moves through the entire system, undigested waste exits the body through the anus. This is another sphincter through which food must pass and is composed of skeletal and smooth