Dubai: It took just two days for King Croc and Queen Croc to adjust to their new home in Dubai, caretakers said. Some 20 men worked non-stop for three days to capture and transport the more than one-tonne Australian saltwater crocodiles from Australia to their new enclosure at the Dubai Aquarium and Underwater Zoo in Dubai Mall.
“What’s really exciting to see is that within just a week of their transport, the King Croc and Queen Croc are already interacting. They have their way of talking to each other and socialising ,” Paul Hamilton, head curator at the facility, told Gulf News.
The enclosure is specially built to mimic the crocodile’s natural habitat where humidity and air quality is constantly monitored and controlled. It features a 150 square m pool, temperature-controlled to between 28 and 30 degree Celsius. Bird and fish species similar to those of the croc’s habitat have been introduced in the enclosure.
An international animal rights activist, however, said no man-made enclosure can replace that of the wild.
“In the wild, crocodiles spend hours swimming and can regulate the buoyancy and temperature — called ‘thermo-regulation’ — of their bodies. No enclosure-no matter how large-is able to provide crocodiles with everything that is natural and important to them,” Ashley Fruno, senior campaigner at the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), told Gulf News.
Dr Reza Khan, a wildlife and zoo management specialist at Dubai Municipality, said the saltwater species is ferocious and the largest living reptile on the planet.
“Temperamentally, it’s considered to be bad-tempered, mostly because of its size and fearlessness. It feeds on anything that it can grab – from a human being to a buffalo… It’s a voracious eater,” he said.
However, Dr Khan said keeping the two crocodiles at Dubai Mall should not be a problem, describing their new home as “self-contained animal exhibit facilities with suitable staff and good management.
“So, there should be no problem in managing or exhibiting it for the public. It’s expected all people keeping crocodiles like the saltwater species must have sufficient security measures in place to keep the animal and people safe from each other. Also, when food is sufficient a crocodile doesn’t wander or make unnecessary movements.”
Hamilton said necessary permits were obtained and protocols from the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora were followed for the acquisition of the wild animals.
