They have been reported by water-skiers in Fish River and bass fishermen casting spinner baits at lily pad beds deep in the Mobile-Tensaw Delta.

Manatee sightings in Alabama's coastal waters have been on the rise for the last five years, evidence of an apparent expansion of the endangered animal's range.

But due to the haphazard nature of the sightings being reported, scientists have so far been unable to figure out how many of the huge vegetarians are spending their summers in Alabama.

Hoping to turn the sightings made by the public into useful scientific information, the Dauphin Island Sea Lab, in conjunction with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, has established a manatee reporting program with a toll free phone number and a Web site that will accept photos and descriptions of where the animals were seen.

"We're involved because the manatee is a listed species in Alabama. It is endangered. We're interested because we don't know where they go in Alabama, where they stay," said Dianne Ingram, a Fish & Wildlife biologist in the Daphne field office. "We've been trying to track them for a few years, but it's difficult to keep up with them, especially with so many anecdotal reports."

Ingram said the manatees appear to be migrating from Florida, as evidenced by the first reported sighting this year, two weeks ago in the Intracoastal Waterway.

"They were headed into Alabama. The last reported sighting we had last year was also in the Intracoastal but headed toward Florida," Ingram said. "That's really neat. It looks like they are moving from Florida."

Over the last several years, Press-Register reporters have observed manatees, sometimes with young, in Fish River, Dog River, Fowl River, Mobile Bay and Grand Bay.

Members of the public have reported seeing the creatures in some of those same areas, as well as Bayou La Batre, Halls Mill Creek, Rattlesnake Bayou and interior sections of the Mobile-Tensaw Delta, such as McReynolds Lake.

Scientists believe it's likely that the same animals are returning to the area each year, teaching their young where to find the best grazing areas.

Manatees were once common in the area but were not seen in the 1970s or 80s. Then, in the mid-1990s, they began turning up again, coinciding with the resurgence of undersea grassbeds that had been lost on both sides of the bay.

The present size of the U.S. manatee population is thought to be between 2,500 and 3,000. There has been growing pressure in Florida to downgrade the status of the manatee from "endangered" to "threatened," which would loosen certain restrictions on waterfront development in that state.

Collisions with boats account for about 90 percent of all manatee deaths, according to some estimates. The animals are sometimes able to heal their wounds, but propellers can cut deeply. A slice deep enough to hit internal organs usually delivers a death blow.

"It seems like (sightings) have been increasing in recent years," said Ruth Carmichael, with the Dauphin Island Sea Lab. "We've got someone manning the phones and we're set up to respond to each report we get within 24 hours. If we can get photos, that's great."

Carmichael said scientists would study the photos, looking for propeller scars on the animals' backs.

"What we're really looking for are pictures of the scarring pattern. They use those like a fingerprint for each animal. They have a large database at the Wildlife Trust in Florida. They can actually track the animals by looking at the scars on their backs," Carmichael said.

But, she stressed, it's important that people leave the animals alone, viewing them from a distance of at least 100 feet. She said people shouldn't attempt to swim with them or feed them, especially if they are with young.

"Don't do anything that changes their behavior. That's the litmus test. If you've done anything that makes them move or quit eating, that's the federal definition of harassment, and that's illegal," she said. "If you can get a photo, that's great, but don't go chasing them. We'd rather just have a report of their location.

"We don't want the animals or the people getting too comfortable with each other. That's when accidents occur, and it's usually the manatee that loses."

Carmichael said anyone reporting a sighting should note the date, time and location, with as much detail as possible, including GPS coordinates if available. In addition to photos, basic information, such as how many manatees were seen, what they were doing and whether they were spotted from a dock or a boat would be useful.

To report a manatee sighting in Alabama waters, call 1-866-493-5803 or e-mail manatee@disl.org. For more information visit http://manatee.disl.org.