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Efforts to remove tire from crocodile’s neck continue
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A crocodile with a motorcycle tire around its neck is spotted in the Palu River in Palu, Central Sulawesi, on Sept. 20. Volunteers have been trying to help the animal to no avail. (Antara /Mohamad Hamzah)
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eptile lovers in Palu, Central Sulawesi, have been trying to lure a crocodile onto dry land to make removing a motorcycle tire from around its neck easier, but the bait, a chicken, failed to tempt the animal.
Locals said the crocodile in the Palu River had been spotted with the tire around its neck two weeks ago. The tire, thought to be from a Vespa scooter, had been thrown into the estuary where the crocodile was.
“We have been waiting for hours, we offered a live chicken and chicken meat, but it did not touch them. If it touches the food, we will be able to herd it to a shallower area and then catch it and hopefully remove the tire,” one of the volunteer reptile lovers, Miswati, 40, told The Jakarta Post.
She said the crocodile’s head was about 40 centimeters long and the body 300 centimeters long.
Seven volunteers are working to help the crocodile, supervised by Central Sulawesi Natural Resource Conservation Agency (BKSDA) head Syihabuddin.
Locals crowded near the river in hope of spotting the crocodile, which is thought to be of the Crocodilus porosus or Crocodilus siamensis species, which are common in the area.
Central Sulawesi BKSDA and the volunteers said they would continue to try to help the crocodile. (evi)
