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Michael McCarthy of See Through Canoe encountered a curious and friendly manatee while he was enjoying a day on the water near St Petersburg, Florida, on February 18.

McCarthy captured video of the encounter, showing the manatee as it swims next to his boat.

Eventually, the creature swims under McCarthy’s clear catamaran and flips over onto its back, using its flippers to hang on to the bottom of the craft and look up at McCarthy.

“He rolled over and just sort of held on and floated there, looking up through the clear boat for a long time,” McCarthy told Storyful.

He added that although manatees are not on the endangered species list, it is illegal to feed, touch, or follow wild marine mammals, with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration offering guidelines for people to responsibly appreciate them. Credit: Michael McCarthy via Storyful