A 4-foot-long alligator was present in a New York Metropolis park Sunday, in response to metropolis officers, and has since been transported to a close-by zoo.
The alligator was present in a lake at Brooklyn’s Prospect Park, the NYC Division of Parks and Recreation mentioned.
The animal was first noticed Sunday morning by park upkeep employees, who then alerted the division’s Parks Enforcement Patrol and City Park Rangers.
“We’re grateful to our Parks Enforcement Patrol and City Park Rangers who snapped into motion to seize and transport the alligator,” the parks division mentioned in a press release. “Fortunately nobody was harmed and the animal is being evaluated.”
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The gator was in “poor situation and really torpid” when it was discovered, the division added. It was later transported to the Bronx Zoo for rehabilitation. The zoo mentioned the animal was beneath analysis.
How the alligator ended up in Prospect Park remains to be unknown, the parks division advised USA TODAY Monday. Officers haven’t publicly recognized any accountable people at this level.
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“Parks are usually not appropriate houses for animals not indigenous to these parks – domesticated or in any other case,” the parks division said.
“Along with the potential hazard to park goers this might have precipitated, releasing non-indigenous animals or undesirable pets can result in the elimination of native species and unhealthy water high quality. On this case the animal was discovered very torpid and presumably chilly shocked since it’s native to heat, tropical climates.”
The division additionally famous that releasing animals into New York Metropolis parks is illegitimate – urging anybody who sees an deserted animal to contact authorities.
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