A monkey has been spotted in the Riverside Park neighborhood of Fort Lauderdale, leaving residents in awe. The monkey, identified as a vervet monkey named Maddie, has been seen eating mangoes from backyard trees and even taking bananas from residents’ hands.

Monkey’s Origin

According to the Dania Beach Monkey Sanctuary, Maddie is a runaway from a wild colony that lives near the sanctuary. The sanctuary’s director, Dr. Missy Williams, said it’s extremely rare for females to leave the colony, and they’re not sure what sparked Maddie’s decision to leave her social group.

Residents are advised not to feed Maddie, but instead take a picture and email it to the Dania Beach Monkey Sanctuary so they can keep track of the monkey. The sanctuary is trying to coax Maddie back to her colony.

Original reporting: NBC6 Miami — read the source article.