Photos: Giant 1-Ton Crocodile Caught in the Philippines [PHOTOS & VIDEO]
By IBTimes Staff Reporter | Sep 06, 2011 10:42 AM EDT
A group of villagers in the Philippines have captured a gigantic 21-foot-long, 2,370-pound monster crocodile, thought to be the largest creature of its kind now in captivity.
The villagers of the marshy province of Bunawan, 515 miles southeast of the capital Manila, have attempted to capture the nuisance crocodile for several years.
The crocodile killed a water buffalo in an attack witnessed by villagers last month and was also suspected of killing a small child and a fisherman who went missing in July.
"We were nervous but it's our duty to deal with a threat to the villagers," Mayor Edwin Cox Elorde told The Associated Press by telephone. "When I finally stood before it, I couldn't believe my eyes."
Project director Ronald Nuer of the Bunawan Municipal Council told GMA News that it took 21 nights to snare the giant croc, which freed itself from the restraining ropes twice before it was eventually subdued. Dozens of men worked to bait the beast, using an eight millimeter metal cable to snare it.
It took about 100 people to drag the croc out of the creek where it was caught. It was then brought to a clearing, where a crane hoisted it onto a truck, The Associated Press reported.
The crocodile was placed under the care of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Agusan del Sur and has been secured inside a fenced-in area, where the town plans to create an ecotourism park.
The Guinness Book of World Records reports that the largest crocodile in captivity is 17-feet-long "Cassius" of Australia. If the facts are verified, the new Filipino crocodile could take the record by a long shot.
View video footage and check out the photos of the villagers celebrating below:
The stress of captivity and need to adjust to a new environment prompted Bunawan officials to temporarily stop public viewing of the 21-foot crocodile captured in Philippine waters.
Source: REUTERS / Vittorio Hernandez
Bunawan residents named the 21-foot crocodile "Lolong." The catch turned locals into budding Crocodile Dundees.
Source: REUTERS / Vittorio Hernandez
Mayor Cox Elorde of Bunawan township, Agusan del Sur Province, pretends to measure a giant crocodile, captured by residents and hunters late Saturday in southern Philippines.
Source: GMA
