Footage of Manatee Hugging Florida Surfer's Board While in the Water Goes Viral: 'Hello, Beautiful!'

A surfer shared the sweet moment on Reddit

An experienced surfer got a surprise visitor who appeared on his board.

Redditor r/shallowwaterahead shared a video of an encounter with a manatee while surfing somewhere in Florida. The video shows the manatee gracefully placing one fin on the board and hanging on the edge.

“Hello, beautiful! How are you? Oh, you doing well? Very well, beautiful,” says the surfer to the manatee, who stops occasionally to dip her head back into the water.

– Glad to see you too.

The video cuts as the manatee turns to go back into the water and the surfer yells, “Oh, Jesus!”

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When one commenter wrote that the experience “must have been amazing,” the surfer responded, sharing more about his encounter — which involved more than one manatee.

“It was amazing! In 15 years I have never had such an act,” he wrote.

“About 10 minutes earlier, he flipped my friend off the board. She lost her phone to the bottom. When her friend called him, it rang on the bottom and scared about a dozen manatees.”

“That’s why I go ‘Oh, Jesus!’ ” he explains. “I thought I was going to get a tail too 😂😂.”

Image of manatees underwater in Fort Myers Beach, Florida. Colors and shapes of the underwater world/Getty Images

Last summer, authorities in Florida had to ask the public to stop calling to report “distressed” manatees when they see them huddled together, explaining that the animals are exhibiting natural mating behavior.

The Pinella County Sheriff’s Office shared their message with a video. In the clip, a group of slow-moving manatees tumble and roll near shore while Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On” plays.

“If you see this… don’t call us,” the sheriff’s office captioned the video. “They’re more than fine. It’s mating season.”

Manatee mating season occurs between March and September, especially in the warmer summer months. Breeding occurs in shallow waters in groups of 10-15 manatees, according to the Manatee Swimming Center.

Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education