A Maryland man who whooped it up in a Facebook video after leaping on and clutching a pelican in the Florida Keys is now facing charges, the local sheriff’s office reported Monday.

He is being charged with animal cruelty and molestation of a protected species by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Monroe County Sheriff Rick Ramsay said in a statement.

The man, identified by The Baltimore Sun as 31-year-old Hunter Hardesty, can be seen on the video using a fish to lure a pelican in the water close to a dock at a Key West marina. He then jumps directly on top of the bird and grabs it as the pelican tries to escape. Laughter, apparently from his friends, can be heard as a woman threatens to call the police. After nipping at Hardesty, the pelican manages to flee, apparently unharmed.

After Hardesty posted a video of his wildlife encounter on his Facebook page Thursday, it quickly went viral, but not in a good way. People responding were furious. Hardesty goofed in his own comment with the video: “Next time ima eat him for dinner. I wonder what they taste like.” On Sunday he added: “I’m so hungry I could eat a pelican!”

Ramsay said he “shared the anger of those who contacted me regarding this video. This type of behavior — the abuse of animals — will not be tolerated on my watch.”