Usually manatees and dugongs give birth to only one calf every three to five years. The gestation period, or time it takes the calf to develop inside the mother, is about thirteen months. A newborn calf is pinkish, about four feet long, and weighs 60-100 pounds, about as big as a full grown goat. Once born, a calf immediately swims to the surface for its first breath of air. Sometimes a calf clings or rests on its mother's back as she feeds or sleeps and comes up to the surface for air when she does. The calf drinks milk from its mother's teats which are under her flipper. Though the calf is able to graze on plants soon after birth, it nurses and stays with its mother for up to two years. The father does not participate in the care of the calf, and the mother and father do not stay together as a pair.