A 2-year-old manatee stranded in a small Florida pond far from open water was rescued last week after the storm surge from Hurricane Helene carried it more than a mile inland.

The Florida Fish Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) announced on November 7, that the Clearwater Aquarium, the University of Florida, and ZooTampa responded to a manatee in distress. The team assisted in the rescue after a manatee became trapped in a small pond near the Big Bend Wildlife Management Area, according to the FWC. (FWC)

A 2-year-old manatee was found 1.5 miles from open water in a small pond near the Big Bend Wildlife Management Area in Dixie County.

Sea cow, not pond cow. A juvenile manatee was rescued from a small pond in Florida — a mile and a half from open water — after being stranded