[MAIL] A band of herpes-ridden monkeys are roaming across northeastern Florida after escaping from a state park miles away, threatening the locals and the environment. The rhesus macaques were living at the Silver Springs State Park near Ocala, Florida, but the creatures, native to south and southeast Asia, escaped the area and have since been spotted in Jacksonville, St. Johns, St. Augustine, Palatka, Welaka, and Elkton, Florida, according to First Coast News.
While the monkeys tend to keep to themselves, over a quarter of the 300 feral creatures counted at Silver Spring State Park carried Herpes B, according to a 2018 survey by National Geographic.
While it's extremely rare for herpes B to spread from monkey to human, when it does it can be fatal.
The rhesus macaques were first introduced to Silver Springs State Park in the late 1930s when a tour boat operator named Colonel Tooey released 12 of the furry animals onto a man-made island as a tourist attraction.
