Current:Home > ScamsVideo shows 10-foot crocodile pulled from homeowner's pool in Florida -Wealth Impact Academy
Video shows 10-foot crocodile pulled from homeowner's pool in Florida
View
Date:2025-04-19 15:31:31
A large American crocodile thrashed and growled as wildlife officials worked to remove it from the backyard pool of a home in the Florida Keys early Sunday morning.
Officials say they received a call from a homeowner in Plantation Key at around 2 a.m. local time on Sunday, after the massive creature was spotted in their below-ground pool. Video footage recorded during the successful capture shows a group of "trappers" from an organization called Pesky Critters Animal Control reining in the reptile with what appears to be a spool of rope, while the creature tugs, rolls and splashes around in the water. CBS Miami originally reported the stunning interaction on Monday.
Pulling the crocodile — which, wildlife officials said, measured 10 feet long — from the pool onto the surrounding deck was particularly challenging.
"We now have a slippery pool deck here," Todd Hardwick, the trapper tasked with collecting the animal from the property, can be heard telling a colleague and a law enforcement officer in the video that Pesky Critters shared to its Facebook page on Sunday.
Hardwick was able to "secure" the crocodile with help from an assistant trapper, Jeff Peterla. The pair heaved the reptile into the pool deck and restrained it before they dragged it along the backyard patio with the help of a Monroe County officer. They ultimately moved the crocodile to another location near open water, removed its restraints and released it back into the wild.
American crocodiles are one of two crocodile species seen in the United States, and they are only found in South Florida, according to the National Park Service. Different from the more common American alligator, which lives in various habitats throughout the southeastern U.S., these crocodiles are protected as a threatened animal species under the Federal Endangered Species Act.
The crocodile can be distinguished from an alligator based on a handful of defining physical features, including its lizard-like shape and long, muscular tail, as well as its four relatively short legs, which have five toes on the front feet and four toes on the back feet, according to its profile on the NPS website. The crocodile's snout is triangular, and a single tooth is visible on each side of its lower jaw, even when the mouth is closed.
Male crocodiles can reach about 20 feet in length at their largest, but wildlife officials say they usually do not grow to be longer than 14 feet in the wild. Female crocodiles are smaller, ranging from about eight feet to 12 feet in length.
- In:
- Florida
- crocodile
veryGood! (4)
Related
- Global Warming Set the Stage for Los Angeles Fires
- Can $3 billion persuade Black farmers to trust the Department of Agriculture?
- Reese Witherspoon, Heidi Klum bring kids Deacon, Leni to Vanity Fair event
- Will Changes to Medicare Coverage Improve the Mental Health Gap?
- 'Kraven the Hunter' spoilers! Let's dig into that twisty ending, supervillain reveal
- Abbott Elementary's Sheryl Lee Ralph and Janelle James Unexpectedly Twin at the Golden Globes
- Lawrence stopped short of goal line as Jags eliminated from playoff race in 28-20 loss to Titans
- Cindy Morgan, 'Caddyshack' star, found dead at 69 after roommate noticed a 'strong odor'
- Finally, good retirement news! Southwest pilots' plan is a bright spot, experts say
- Liz Cheney on whether Supreme Court will rule to disqualify Trump: We have to be prepared to defeat him at ballot box
Ranking
- Angelina Jolie nearly fainted making Maria Callas movie: 'My body wasn’t strong enough'
- New Zealand fisherman rescued after floating in ocean for 23 hours, surviving close encounter with shark
- Rapper-turned-country singer Jelly Roll on his journey from jail to the biggest stages in the world
- 'The Bear' star Ayo Edebiri gives flustered, heartwarming speech: Watch the moment
- Trump issues order to ban transgender troops from serving openly in the military
- Browns vs. Texans playoff preview: AFC rematch in wild-card round
- Hailee Steinfeld Addresses Josh Allen Engagement Speculation at 2024 Golden Globes
- Golden Globes 12 best dressed: Jaw-dropping red carpet looks from Selena Gomez, Margot Robbie, more
Recommendation
Who's hosting 'Saturday Night Live' tonight? Musical guest, how to watch Dec. 14 episode
Will Changes to Medicare Coverage Improve the Mental Health Gap?
WWII heroics of 'Bazooka Charlie' doubted until daughter sets record straight
Halle Bailey and boyfriend DDG welcome first child
The 401(k) millionaires club keeps growing. We'll tell you how to join.
Explainer: Missing door ‘plug’ may hold vital clues to how a gaping hole blew open on a jetliner
Eagles rock LA homecoming for Long Goodbye tour, knock nearby 'spaceship' SoFi Stadium
Horoscopes Today, January 7, 2024