Reward for stolen croc

2008-03-31 13:46

Oslo - A Norwegian aquarium has offered a reward of more than €3 000 for help to find a crocodile stolen at the weekend, its director said on Monday.

Thieves stole the dwarf caiman on Saturday after breaking into its cage, said zoo director Kees Oscar Ekeli.

"It's forbidden for private individuals to possess such animals in Norway, which makes its black market value quite high," he said.

The caiman is worth around €1 250 on the official aquarium market and up to six or seven times more on the black market, he added.

The four- or five-year-old caiman is around 70cm long and is not considered a threat to humans.

But the crocodile, lent to the aquarium by a Danish institution, is very fragile, Ekeli said.

"These crocodiles need a place to hide, an adequate temperature, proper food and no stress, otherwise they die."

- AFP