Mali: Land of Mystery

So... you all probably know that this is a manatee. But I bet you didn't know that they have manatees in Mali! I couldn't believe it when I read about it. Apparently, you can find fresh water manatees in the Niger River, which spends a large part of its distance in Mali.
The picture above is not of African manatees. In fact, I couldn't really find a picture of one. There was a picture of an African manatee in a Japanese aquarium, but even that was a terrible picture.
So I'm thinking I'll do the first thorough photographic study of the African manatee. National Geographic here I come! Okay, so the Niger River also has hippos and crocodiles... So I'll probably get an "assistant" (that's what you call it in the professional photography business), give him my camera, tell him to swim out into the murky Niger, and take the credit for the photos after he's risked life and limb.
Of course, I would never do this even though it is considered totally legitimate in the magazine photography world. No joke.