A hunter in Florida’s big bend region in Dixie County unexpectedly came across a 2-year-old, 500-pound manatee in a small pond more than a mile from open water last week. Rescuers from ZooTampa at Lowry Park’s Manatee Rescue Team traveled to the pond, which is near the Big Bend Wildlife Management Area. In a Facebook post shared Tuesday, the organization said the likely reason the manatee ended up in the pond was “significant storm surge flooding” from Hurricane Helene in September.