From WBOY:
The West Virginia Division of Natural Resources received information that a reptile, possibly a caiman, was in the Mon River between Fairmont and Rivesville.
DNR officials said people were contacting them about an alligator, although based on descriptions the DNR has received, it was believed to be a caiman, which is a member of the alligator family.
DNR Wildlife Resources learned Friday afternoon that the caiman had been captured and killed by two fisherman Friday morning. Marion County Natural Resources Police Officer Jeremiah Clark said the fisherman planned to eat the reptile’s tail.
Yep.
It seems we have an epidemic of crocodilians being released in this state.
Just a few weeks ago, an alligator was killed in Southern West Virginia.
I know of a pet store in Marion County that used to sell alligators and caimans, which are not regulated in West Virginia at all. I was shocked to see them available for purchase.
I’m amazed the rivers here in summer aren’t full of these inappropriate pets.
Of course, this caiman would have frozen to death in just a few weeks, so it’s almost a good thing that its tail is now on the menu.
Update: I’ve been informed that this animal is most likely an American alligator, not a caiman. It looks more like an alligator to me, too. However, I was trusting the WVDNR’s judgment here.
Back when I lived in Massachusetts in the 1970’s the pet shop at the local mall got a shipment of four caimen in one time. They were less than a foot long. The price, $7 each. I would have bought one if I had a place to keep it.
Good luck with eating that tail. I had crocodile one time and the meat was very pale like chicken but rubbery and somewhat fishy tasting. I would rather eat Cantonese style red pork.
The only non native reptile that seems to survive British winters is an American species of pond turtle. It’s usually assumed they are released after mum says “get that thing out of here” but this warem there have been news reports of one or two baby turtles being seen in the wild…!?
There’s one in a fishing pond not far from me and it’s been there at least 10 years. I’m surprised there’s any fish left for the anglers. These red eared terrrapins used to be all the rage in pet shops for at least a decade in the 80s. There’d be hundreds of hatchlings about an inch in size in one aquarium and they were cheap enough for kids to go home with a couple from their pocket money. I had two myself when I was about 10. My mum got sick of them as they were smelly and filthy due to no filtration, a tiny home and I was begging for a big aquarium upgrade for them. Feet were put down as I already had a 2 foot aquarium of fancy goldfish and a hamster. She was very vague about the person at work she said was going to look after them – a bit like sending the dog to live on a farm – so god only knows where they ended up. I reckon that’s a very common story. I’m surprised there aren’t more of them out there. Especially near the outflow of places like power plants that use water as a coolant. Before it shut, the glassworks in the next town over sustained a community of tropical cichlids that were dumped there at some point, probably after a similar story of staring off cute, then ending up big bruisers with an appetite for human fingers and their tankmates.
typo there: I mean this warm summer.
Any idea what species of caiman it is/was? Are they competition for indigenous alligators deeper in the South (where they might overwinter)?
They can live only in South Florida. Most of the ones in captivity in the US are spectacled, but I can’t tell from the photo what species it is.
A pet store in Corvallis, Oregon used to sell baby american alligators. Don’t know if they still do, but it’s shockingly easy to buy them. There’s exotic pet expos several times a year in many locations in the state where anyone can walk away with an alligator. The reptile breeder I used to work for had about a dozen or so rescued alligators with the same story behind each of them: bought as cute baby, got big and scary, didn’t know what the f*ck to do with it.