NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – Authorities want to warn the public about a potentially rabid squirrel running rampant in Prospect Park.

Five people have already been bitten, possibly more.

As CBS2’s Jessica Borg reported, families who filled the park on this sunny Saturday found unusual flyers by the entrance, warning park goers about the recent attacks by a particularly aggressive squirrel.

“I wouldn’t feed it any nuts,” one man said.

“I think that’s very crazy. What do we do about that? Because it’s a park and we can’t kill all the squirrels,” a woman said.

Five people were bitten near the Parkside and Ocean Avenue entrance between Tuesday and Thursday.

The New York City health department urges any visitors that were bitten in the area since July 10 to get checked by a doctor immediately. If your pet has been bitten, get it to the vet.

Officials say squirrels are rarely infected with rabies, but because of the unusually aggressive behavior, they’re assuming the animal is rabid, Borg reported.

The deadly rabies virus is transmitted through the saliva of an infected animal.

While the search is on for this specific squirrel, experts say it’s likely that if it’s rabid, it’s already dead.

Christopher Williams visits the park often and said he’s not surprised.

“You are in a park. There is wildlife still out here,” he said.

Health officials say they have not identified any other rabid animals in the park, nor in any other parts of Brooklyn so far this year.

Mother of two Elizabeth Mangum said her guard is always up.

“The squirrels here are aggressive actually. People here feed them, and they come up to the picnic tables,” she said.

People are urged not to feed any animals in the park. Most squirrel bites happen when someone tries to feed one and gets too close.