Perhaps the world’s most famous reptile, Elvis the crocodile celebrated his 58th birthday at the Australian Reptile Park on January 2.
Visitors were amazed at the reptile’s strength when keepers gave the 4.75 metre crocodile a quarter of a cow to celebrate the occasion.
The 500kg beast shot out of the water, grabbed onto the massive carcass and performed his world-famous “death roll” to claim the prize.
Elvis gained world-wide attention in 2011 when he ate his keeper’s lawnmower, earning him the title of “Australia’s Crankiest Crocodile”.
Since then, many of Elvis’ videos online have gone viral and he has become loved all over the world.
Operations Manager Billy Collett said Elvis was “absolutely fired up” for his birthday.
“Once he shot out of the water, he quickly grabbed onto that carcass, and there was no letting go,” Collett said.
“Then the death-rolling started, taking the show to a whole new level.
“Giving him this type of food provides excellent enrichment for him.
“In the wild, he would easily take down a prey item this large, so giving him this treat is allowing him to mimic natural behaviours he’d utilise in the wild.”
Elvis came to the Australian Reptile Park in 2011 from the Northern Territory where he was causing havoc to fisherman’s boats in Darwin Harbour.
He has a reputation for keeping staff on their toes, so the process of giving him such a large food item needs to be cautiously thought out.
Elvis the crocodile is an ambassador for saltwater crocodiles and one of the most popular animals at the Australian Reptile Park.
He can be seen in action during his daily feed at 1.30pm.
Saltwater crocodiles were once hunted to the brink of extinction in Australia but following their status to be legally protected in Queensland, the 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.