Mayans used the manatee, which had great meaning in daily life of these peoples. The main use given to manatee has been as a source of meat for subsistence. However the meat and bones are also said to have medicinal properties and the fat is used for cooking (Colmenero et al. 1988). In several localities in Mexico manatees have until recently been considered "white meat fish" of high traditional value and which should be respected outside of Easter week. Some grant them special importance for "deepening" rivers and maintaining them clear of plants that interfere with boat traffic.

Estimates for Bahia de Chetumal vary between at an average of 83. Bahia de Chetumal has been proposed as one of the most important mating and calving areas of western Caribbean due to the percentage of calves varying between 5.0 and 12.4.

Manatees were first protected in Mexico in 1921 and 1925, when hunting became illegal under the Ley de Pesca. In October 1981 Departamento de Pesca prohibited the commercialization of any manatee product. Manatees in Mexico are classified as "subject to special protection" by Secretaría de Desarrollo Social. The new fisheries law of Secretaría de Pesca ratifies the prohibition of manatee hunting and stipulates fines between 2000 and 20,000 minimum wages for offenders. A proposal has been approved by the government of Mexico to declare Bahia de Chetumal as a refuge for manatees.

Reproduction

Male manatees (bulls) are sexually mature at about nine to ten years. Female manatees (cows) are probably sexually mature by about seven to eight years.
The newborn calf is capable of swimming to the surface on its own. Calves vocalize at or soon after birth. The calf begins to nurse within a few hours after birth by suckling from a teat under the pectoral flippers. Calves nurse underwater. Calves begin nibbling on plants within a few weeks of birth. Although it may be weaned by the end of its first year, the calf remains close to its mother for up to two years. The calf is dependent on its mother not only for nutrition, but also for learning about feeding and resting areas, travel routes, and warm-water refuges.
Manatees are nonaggressive, nonterritorial herbivores that spend most of their time feeding (six to eight hours per day) and resting (two to twelve hours per day). The remainder of their day is spent traveling; curiously investigating objects; and socializing by mouthing, rubbing against, and interacting with other manatees.
Manatees feed off the bottom, in the water column, and at the surface. They have even been known to crop overhanging branches, consume acorns, and haul themselves partially out of the water to eat bank vegetation. Manatees use their front flippers and large, flexible lips to manipulate vegetation.