MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – A monkey was spotted Thursday afternoon in North Miami Beach for the second time this month.
Police said the monkey was spotted in a tree in the area of Northeast 172nd Street and 16th Avenue.
Recommended Videos
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials were called to the scene by police, but officers said there was no threat to the public.
Local 10 News reporter Christian De La Rosa said people who live in the area told him they wanted the monkey to be removed for its safety, but authorities said they were not going to capture the monkey.
The sighting comes a week after a monkey was spotted near the King of Diamonds strip club.
Residents in the Embassy Lakes community in Cooper City said they have also seen a monkey hanging around their neighborhood this month.
According to officials with the Dania Beach Vervet Project, his name is Mikey and he was forced out by another male and has been looking for a new place to live.
"So what happens is, when they reach sexual maturity at the age of 5, they'll leave their social group and they'll go to look for other monkey groups to join," Missy Williams, with the Dania Beach Vervet Project, said.
Experts at the Vervet Project said the monkeys are very good at urban mapping and will climb up into a tree, memorize the landscape and figure out exactly where they want to go.
The vervet monkey is native to Africa.
It's unclear whether Mikey is the same monkey that was seen March 20 or Thursday in North Miami Beach.
FWC officials said people have been feeding a group of the wild monkeys that live in the Dania Beach area.
Authorities warn people to not feed the monkeys or any wild animal and to keep a safe distance away from them.