Tampa Mystery Monkey
There’s been a wild monkey in the Tampa Bay area for the past year – and he’s been caught on video visiting bird feeders (see video below).
Homeowner Rick Coffey spotted the monkey in his back yard in the Pinellas Point neighborhood at the southern tip of St. Petersburg, FL. He said the monkey appeared to be hungry and scooped mouthfuls of seed out of a bird feeder and came back 45 minutes later for more seed.
Officials believe the monkey is a young male rhesus macaque. No one is sure where it came from, but wildlife officials believe it could be an abandoned pet, or could have gotten separated from a group of wild monkeys in a state park near Ocala.
Officials with Florida Fish and Wildlife have been trying to catch the monkey for more than a year, and caution residents to be careful when near the monkey.
The monkey has become famous, with thousands of followers on Facebook and a mention on the Colbert Report on Comedy Central.
1 comment
cherylboker says:
July 11, 2011 at 5:39 am (UTC -5 )
maybe the best thing to do is leave some food out for the monkey. just like ferals he will slow down a little with food and hopefully pick a tampa bay home that he likes the food and shelter best. tampa bay citizen, please call animal control if you see him. he is liable to get hurt unless he is monitored by humans in someway. he could get hit by a car is my major concern. pray for this little guy. obviously, he’s young. he will feel more comfortable with his own kind