VIRGINIA KEY, Fla. – A manatee is back in the wild after a successful rehabilitation at Miami Seaquarium.
Lumi spent about seven months getting healthy before she was ready to be released back into the wild.
Lumi was found in a Little River backyard in March, stuck on a boat ramp with some injuries to her back.
"We're not quite sure what brought her in. We think it might be a floodgate incident, but we're not sure," Jessica Schiffhauer said.
Schiffhauer is the animal care supervisor at Miami Seaquarium, where Lumi was brought for treatment and rehab.
"We did some X-rays and she had to get some antibiotics when she was first here, but most of it was just being here and eating and growing," Schiffhauer said.
A crane lifted Lumi over the back fence of the Miami Seaquarium Wednesday morning and she was slowly lowered into the bay.
The crew at Miami Seaquarium estimates that Lumi is a little over 10 years old.
Manatees have a lifespan of anywhere from 30 to 60 years, so they hope she has a long, healthy life ahead of her.