Dugongs are large grey-coloured mammals which spend their entire lives in the sea. They're huge...but gentle and shy. Fully grown, they can reach up to 3 metres in length and weigh up to 400 kilograms. 

Credited as being the origin of the mermaid myth (those early sea-farers where lonely), their nostrils are located near the top of their heads and they swim by sweeping their broad "shovel" tail up and down, aide by their two flippers.

In Australia, Dugongs swim in the shallow coastal waters of northern Australia from the Queensland/New South Wales border in the east to Shark Bay off the coast of Western Australia. They are also found in other parts of the Indian and Pacific Oceans in warm shallow seas where seagrass is found.

Dugongs are usually found in shallow waters protected from large waves and storms. They surface only to breathe, and never come on to land. Female Dugongs give birth underwater to a single calf only every three to seven years. The calf stays with its mother, drinking milk from her teats and following close by until one or two years of age, and eventually reach adult size sometime between 9 and 17 years of age.

Dugongs are often known as "Sea Cows", because they graze on sea-grasses. These marine plants look like grass, growing on a sandy sea floor in shallow, warm water. Dugongs flourish in areas with large amounts of sea-grass.

Slow-moving, they have little protection against predators. Being large animals, however, only large sharks and saltwater crocodiles are a danger to them. Young Dugongs hide behind their mothers when in danger. Dugongs are protected, except where traditionally hunted by Aboriginal people.

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