Or however it is the saying goes.
Photos snapped in November 2021 by Save the Manatee volunteer specialist Gina McClain and shared on the nonprofit's social media this week show a turtle hitching a rather slow ride with one of the many sea cows that reside at Blue Spring State Park in north-central Florida.
The tortoise, as shown in the pics, appears to be basking in the Florida sunshine on the manatee's back as the large mammal floats through the emerald spring.
"#Fall4Manatees featured staff submission of the week by Gina, who got lucky enough to capture this unique photo of a turtle hitching a ride on a manatee at Blue Spring!" reads the group's post on X (formerly Twitter).
"Surf’s up, little dude 🐢🤙🏽" one person replied to the post.#Fall4Manatees featured staff submission of the week by Gina, who got lucky enough to capture this unique photo of a turtle hitching a ride on a manatee at Blue Spring!
— Save the Manatee (@savethemanatee) October 16, 2024
For more info and ways to participate check out https://t.co/Zs8nHZKyu6 pic.twitter.com/3YaYoWCTF3
"We don't deserve animals," responded another.
You can keep an eye out for similar manatee shenanigans via the webcams that Save the Manatee operates at a handful of state parks.
In addition to its newest set of webcams at Florida's picturesque Silver Springs State Park, the nonprofit has manatee livestreams at Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park and Blue Spring State Park — the latter of which is home to adopted manatees with names like Paddy Doyle and Phyllis, whom viewers can identify via a scar pattern chart.
While the past few years have been exceptionally deadly for the beloved manatees, data has shown that the trend might be subsiding.
