Manatee Springs State Park, First magnitude spring park in Levy County, United States.

Manatee Springs is a first-magnitude spring that flows into the Suwannee River through the longest spring run feeding that river. The spring pool opens into a short run where submerged vegetation and rocks show beneath rippled turquoise-to-green water, and cypress, sweetgum, maple and ash grow along the shoreline.

The area was home to the Timucua people for thousands of years before botanist William Bartram documented the spring in the early 1770s during his travels. Florida later recognized the site's importance and established it as the state's first spring park in 1968.

William Bartram named the spring "Manate Springs" in 1774 after finding a manatee carcass on the shoreline of the run. The spring's constant 72 °F water draws manatees on a 23-mile journey from the Gulf, mostly in fall and winter, and the park records around 100 sightings a year. The state park closes the spring run to boat traffic to protect them.

The park features several walking paths through forests and along the water, with the boardwalk being the easiest access to the spring itself. For more active visitors, swimming, kayaking, and camping are available, so plan for several hours or a full day to explore comfortably.

The spring's constant 72 °F (23 °C) water draws roughly 100 manatee sightings a year, mostly in fall and winter, after a 23-mile trip from the Gulf of Mexico. The tannic acid that darkens the Suwannee stunts aquatic plant growth, so the clear spring gives them a place to feed and rest, and to calve in harsh winters.