What do you give a 57-year-old crocodile for his birthday? A quarter of a cow of course!
Perhaps the world’s most famous reptile, Elvis the crocodile stunned visitors at the Australian Reptile Park recently when he charged keepers to claim his birthday feast and perform a death roll.
The birthday came just weeks after Elvis underwent a major dental operation.
Since the surgery, he has been happily swimming around his enclosure and making the most of the sunshine by sunbaking on the grass.
The reptiles team has also been checking up on Elvis to make sure his jaw is healing nicely, and that there’s no signs of infection.
On his birthday, staff looked on in amazement as Elvis played a quick game of tug of war with three of the reptile keepers.
To break apart a bite-sized piece of the cow carcass, he performed a mighty death roll to the gasps of onlookers and ripped apart the meat easily.
Elvis then was quick to chase the keepers from the yard.
Head of Reptiles Jake Meney said it’s not easy playing tug-of-war with a half-tonne animal like Elvis.
“I always feel the burn in my arms in the days afterwards and since his birthday last year, he’s only gotten stronger,” Meney said.
The Park celebrated throughout the entire New Year long weekend with three lucky visitors winning the opportunity to feed Elvis during their visit.
“That was truly an experience that I will never forget,” one winner said.
“I can’t believe how strong he is; even with a fence between us, feeding him got my heart racing.”
Elvis acts as an ambassador for saltwater crocodiles and is one of the most popular animals at the Australian Reptile Park.
He serves to provide people with a connection to saltwater crocodiles and educates his fans on the importance of saltwater crocodiles in the environment.
Saltwater crocodiles were once hunted to the brink of extinction in Australia but following their status to be legally protected in QLD, NT and WA, their numbers have made a full recovery and they are now listed as least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Source:
Media release, Jan 2
Australian Reptile Park