Videos of a manatee believed to be dead in the waters of Harrington Sound were circulating on social media yesterday.

A woman in one video said she had not believed reports that the mammal had been seen in local waters this month but her clip appeared to show a large animal motionless in the water by a residence in the Harrington Sound area.

The Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo and the Bermuda Zoological Society acknowledged a video of “what appeared to be a manatee in local waters” about two weeks ago.

Wildlife teams at the time were working to verify the sighting and co-ordinating with marine mammal experts to determine the “best path forward for the animal’s welfare” — if its presence was confirmed.

Members of the public were warned to not feed or interact with the animal and to immediately report any sightings to the BAMZ wildlife recovery team.

A BZS spokeswoman said yesterday that the charity was aware of the latest video was working on next steps for the animal.

Florida manatees are known to head to northern waters, sometimes even as far as Massachusetts, during the summer months.

Antillean manatees travel from northern Mexico down to Brazil; Amazon manatees only live in freshwater; and West African manatees are found in the region from which they take their name.

The Royal Gazette has contacted the Ministry of Public Works and Environment for more information.