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Hillsborough County honors Zoo Tampa manatee care team with conservation award
Summary
At its April 15 meeting, the Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners presented the 2026 Theodore Roosevelt Hillsborough Forever Conservation Award to Zoo Tampa staff for work at the Manatee Critical Care Center; county communications noted the team has rescued more than 635 manatees and returned 356 to the wild.
At the April 15 Board of County Commissioners meeting, Hillsborough County presented the 2026 Theodore Roosevelt Hillsborough Forever Conservation Award to staff from Zoo Tampa at Lowry Park for their work at the Manatee Critical Care Center. Katie, a Hillsborough County communications staffer, read the recognition on behalf of the board.
The county highlighted more than three decades of work by the manatee care team. "To date, they've rescued more than 635 manatees and returned 356," Katie said. The award recognizes on-the-ground rescue and rehabilitative care and the team’s public education efforts to help residents and visitors protect manatees and Florida’s waterways.
The presentation was an acknowledgement of long-term conservation and public outreach; no board action was required beyond the recognition. The county post-meeting materials point people to the county website for more information about the award and Zoo Tampa’s manatee work.
