Deputies in Pinellas County, Fla., are pleading with the public to stop calling them about manatees in canals and shorelines along the Gulf Coast, Fox13-TV reported on Aug. 1. People think the manatees are in distress because they're swimming in herds and thrashing about, but officials stress that the sea cows are only mating. "Don't call us," the sheriff's office pleaded via a Facebook post. "We can assure you they are more than fine. Manatees actually mate in herds like these, and often they are near the shore."

A crime's afoot

The infamous "Lake Tahoe Foot Fondler" couldn't outrun authorities forever, the New York Post reported. On Aug. 1, Mark Anthony Gonzales, 26, was arrested in Atwater, Calif., and charged with burglary and battery after two early July incidents at the Club Wyndham South Shore hotel in Nevada. According to police, Gonzales "entered two ... condominiums by opening unlocked screen doors. Once inside, he positioned himself at the foot of the bed and rubbed the feet of two separate adult females" in two different units. Gonzales fled when his victims woke up and confronted him. He is also suspected of trespassing and stealing women's shoes.

The 'Barbie' box

Add funeral homes to the list of businesses cashing in on the blockbuster "Barbie" movie. The Alpha and Omega Funeral Home in Ahuachapan, El Salvador, is offering hot pink Barbie-themed caskets, the New York Post reported. Undertaker Isaac Villegas said they've been swamped with orders. "We wanted to promote the pink coffin as it has become a trend," Villegas said. Similarly, in Guayaquil, Ecuador, funeral home Funeraria Olivares is offering a "Barbie House" coffin, "so you can rest like a Barbie." One El Salvadoran commenter conceded, "Eternal rest doesn't look so bad anymore."

Nowhere to go but up

Alleged car thief Julian Fernandez needs to work on his getaway. When confronted by police in Thornton, Colo., Fernandez, 36, fled the scene — sort of, KKTV reported. He jumped over a security fence and started climbing a 320-foot radio tower. He eventually reached the top, where he stayed for 12 hours before firefighters climbed the tower and brought him down.

Unpacified

A mysterious man is taking pacifiers out of the mouths of babes in Harlow, England, Sky News reported. The incidents started in February, with the most recent one taking place on Aug. 7. Distraught parents have described the thief as a young, slim white man with brown eyes and yellow teeth. "As a parent myself, I understand the level of concern," said police chief inspector Paul Austin.

For the birds

Pinecrest, Fla., has a peculiar problem: peacocks. The New York Times reported on Aug. 9 that the city has been overrun with the large, loud, destructive birds, which peck at roofs and cars and relieve themselves all over driveways. The solution? Peacock vasectomies. Dr. Don J. Harris, the veterinarian who will snip the feisty birds, said they're "bona fide polygamists. We're going to catch one peacock and probably stop seven females from reproducing." County commissioners approved the plan, and city officials designated $7,500 a month to cover the costs.

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