Alligator escaped poachers, but lived with cord slicing its jaw, FL video shows
The alligator was discovered at Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park near Gainesville, leading to a risky rescue operation.
'He had a rope that was tied around his top jaw,' trapper Ron Sanderson reported in the video shared June 7 by Gatorland.
'It was actually so tight that it had grown in and it's messed up his bone on his top jaw. So we were able to capture it and remove this (rope) and it's just amazing that somebody would do this on purpose to this alligator.'
Closer inspection revealed it was a bungee cord and serious damage had been done to the alligator, Gatorland officials reported.
The cord was likely tied to the alligator during a 'very illegal' attempt to catch it, the park reported. There was also evidence someone had been hand feeding the alligator, officials said.
Sanderson reports it took about an hour to trap the alligator, and a Gatorland veterinarian determined the wound would likely heal on its own, the video reports.
The alligator, now named Bungee, will live out the remainder of its life at Gatorland, the video reports. The 110-acre theme park in Orlando is known as 'The Alligator Capital of the World.'
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