Miami Herald - The Miami Seaquarium has added a temporary member to its marine family -- all 1,200 pounds of him.

Thanks to a major rescue mission earlier this month, Kodi, a nine foot manatee, was saved after being spotted near the island of Bimini in the Bahamas.

Manatees are not native to the Bahamas and are typically found in freshwater, brackish and saltwater habitats in Florida and southeastern Georgia.

''The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service contacted us about Kodi,'' said Miami Seaquarium Curator Robert Rose. ``I went down to the island in the middle of December to look at his condition and assess how serious his injuries were. But he had none, so there was no real sense of urgency.''

Rose said it took several weeks for the manatee to be rescued because of several logistical issues.

During that time, Kodi survived by feeding on sea grass and drinking fresh water from the island's Seacrest Marina. A satellite belt was also placed on him to keep track of his condition and whereabouts.

When permission was finally granted to the Seaquarium to retrieve Kodi, the rescue took a few hours.

Members of the rescue crew departed at 4:30 a.m. on the 110-foot U.S. Coast Guard cutter Kodiak Island. By 12:30 p.m., rescuers had located Kodi.

A crane was used to lift and place him into a transporter box.

''Other rescues I've done have taken a few days,'' said Jodi Linvill, a crew member and the Seaquarium's Animal Care supervisor. ``But Kodi was very relaxed when we got him. Other manatees can be feisty and they are so powerful that there is no number of people that can hold one down if they start thrashing.''

''The rescue was such a group effort between so many people,'' Rose said. ``The United States, the Bahamian government and several private and public entities played a role.''

To honor the Coast Guard for its help, Linvill said, the rescuers decided to name the manatee after the Kodiak Island Cutter.

These days, Kodi is living with two other manatees -- Romeo and Tequesta -- in the park's male manatee pool.

''He is doing really well,'' Linvill said. ``He is healthy and eating. At first, he was eating only sea grass, but just the other day he ate a carrot.''

Kodi will be released into the wild after DNA test results determine where he is from.

''We think he is either from Florida or Puerto Rico,'' Rose said. ``There is speculation that there could have been a storm that caused him to end up in Bimini, but we're not sure.''

The Miami Seaquarium is one of three facilities in Florida authorized by the state to rehabilitate manatees.

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