Town mourns largest captive crocodile
2013-02-11 18:52
Manila – A remote southern Philippine town has gone into
mourning over the death of the world's largest saltwater crocodile in
captivity, even though it was blamed for the deaths of several villagers.
Bunawan town plans to preserve the remains of the 1-ton
crocodile, named Lolong, in a museum to keep tourists coming and stop the
community from slipping back into obscurity, the mayor said on Monday.
Lolong was declared dead on Sunday after being found
floating on its back with a bloated stomach in a pond in an ecotourism park,
which had begun to draw tourists, revenue and development because of the
immense reptile, Mayor Edwin Cox Elorde said.
"The whole town, in fact the whole province, is
mourning," Elorde said. "My phones kept ringing because people wanted
to say how affected they are."
Wildlife experts will perform an autopsy to determine the
cause of death, he said.
Guinness World Records had proclaimed it the largest
saltwater crocodile in captivity last year, measuring the giant at 6.17m.
The reptile took the top spot from an Australian
crocodile that measured more than 5m and weighed nearly a ton.
Estimated at more than 50 years old, the crocodile was
named after a government environmental officer who died from a heart attack
after travelling to Bunawan in Agusan del Sur province to help capture the beast.
Even though Lolong was blamed for the deaths of several
villagers over the years, Bunawan villagers grew to love the giant reptile
because it came to symbolise the rich biodiversity of the marsh where it was
captured.
The vast complex of swamp forests, shallow lakes,
lily-covered ponds and wetlands is home to many animals, including threatened
species such as the Philippine hawk eagle.
Various religious groups offered prayers on Monday and
spiritual leaders also planned to perform a tribal funeral rite, which involves
butchering chickens and pigs to thank forest spirits for the fame and other
blessings the crocodile has brought, Elordie said.
The rite is to be held at the ecotourism park, where the
reptile was a star attraction, drawing foreign tourists, scientists and
wildlife journalists to Bunawan, a town of 37 000 people about 830km southeast
of Manila.
The crocodile's capture in September 2011 sparked
celebrations in the town.
It was caught with steel cable traps during a hunt prompted
by the death of a child in 2009 and the later disappearance of a fisherman.
Water buffalos have also been attacked by crocodiles in the area.
About 100 people led by Elorde pulled the crocodile from
a creek using ropes and then hoisted it by crane onto a truck.
Philippine officials had planned to construct a road to
the park to accommodate the growing number of tourists, Elorde said.
He said Lolong will be preserved so tourists and
villagers can continue to marvel at it.
"I'd like them to see the crocodile that broke a
world record and put our town on the map," Elorde said.
- SAPA
