Florida monkeys are almost as prevalent as Florida men these days, with new Volusia County sightings that include monkeys in backyards and even at a school drop-off area.
"I looked up into a tree and kind of went, 'What's that!?'" Colin Innes, a Central Florida riverboat tour operator, told WKMG via CBS News. "I got a little bit closer and realized that I had a monkey probably about 30 feet from me. And trust me, that's not something you see out here on a regular basis whatsoever, so I was shocked." From CBS:
Meanwhile, a Volusia County elementary school principal had to warn parents about a monkey after seeing one run through the school's drop-off area on Wednesday…
An area woman told WKMG that she saw a monkey climbing on her fence. First, she thought the animal was a cat, but then she realized how large it was.
Officials haven't determined if it's just one monkey or a few that are on the loose. It's also not clear whether these furry nomads are coming from a group of around 200 rhesus macaque monkeys who live in nearby Silver Spring State Park (where a Florida man released a bunch in the 1930s), or if they are last month's escapees from a research facility facility in South Carolina.
Either way, Orange County Police have issued a warning on Facebook, asking that the public "NOT feed or approach these animals!" and if a monkey is spotted, to contact the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
