The US Fish and Wildlife Service is searching for whoever is responsible for scraping the word 'Trump' onto a manatee's back in Florida.
Manatees are endangered species and harassing one is a federal criminal offense.
The harassment of the manatee - which turned the slow-moving animal into a political billboard - was revealed in an underwater video on Monday, obtained by the Citrus County Chronicle.
A manatee was found swimming in a Florida river with the word 'TRUMP' etched onto its back
The video shows thick, block letters spelling out 'Trump' on the manatee's back. The letters appear to have been scratched into the algae growing on the animal's back.
The algae that grows on manatees is thought to help protect the animals, by helping to block out harmful UV rays from the sun, according to Dolphins.org.
It's unclear if the manatee could have been injured while the graffiti was scratched onto its back. It's also unknown when or where the carving might've occurred.
The manatee was seen on Sunday in the headwaters of the Homosassa River in Citrus County, Florida.
The US States Fish and Wildlife Service is now investigating the incident, with senior federal wildlife officer and current investigating officer Craig Cavanna telling the newspaper that he couldn't comment on an ongoing investigation, but that the agency was following leads.
Manatees are protected under the Endangered Species Act and it is a federal criminal offense to harass the animals (stock image)
The word 'TRUMP' appeared to have been carved into the algae on the manatee's back
Cavanna told the newspaper that, in his experience, what was done to the manatee 'is very out of character for this community,' because 'Wildlife conservation is a core value in Citrus County.'
Laws are in place to help protect manatees, which take sanctuary along Citrus County's coastlines, from harassment by swimmers and people operating vessels.
Harassing a manatee, which is protected under the Endangered Species Act, could lead to a $50,000 fine and/or up to one-year in federal prison.
Citrus County voted overwhelmingly for Trump in the November 2020 election, with nearly 70 per cent of voters choosing the Republican incumbent.
Republicans were also elected to represent the county in the state Senate and House and a Republican candidate was elected as sheriff.
At least six Citrus County residents traveled to Washington, DC, to attend the Trump rally on the day of the deadly Capitol riot.
One of the Trump supporters, Steve Griffin, told the Citrus County Chronicle that he, his mother and other family and relatives had travel to DC in an effort to keep hold of their 'rights' and 'freedom.'
'They’re trying to steal my rights, my freedom,' Griffin said on January 6, the day of the riot. 'What’s trying to be done? They’re trying to take away the rights of Americans; they’re Second Amendment rights and freedom of speech.'
He claimed that he and his friends didn't go to the Capitol building, where the riot occurred and said that the violence that occurred at the riot, where five people were killed, had been blown 'way out of proportion.'
'When we left after Trump’s speech, everything was perfect, there was no violence, no nothing,' Griffin said, adding that he 'got word Pence was not going to do his lawful duty, so there was no point in going to the Capitol.'
Of the media reports surrounding the riot, Griffin said: 'They’re blowing this way, way out of proportion' and said that 'It’s not like what they’re saying it is. A lot of this is propaganda.'
At least 20 people have been charged with federal crimes following the riot, in which Trump supporters broke into the Capitol building.
At least some of the defendants are accused of bringing weapons and bombs to Capitol Hill, while others were nabbed after being photographed as they ransacked the building and invaded congressional offices or bragged about participating in the rioting.
Anyone with information about the manatee incident is asked to report it to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission at 888-404-FWCC (3922), which will pass the information along to the federal agency.