What a croc - A giant crocodile

Giant crocodile caught in the Philippines

Earlier this month villagers and veteran hunters captured a one-ton saltwater crocodile which they plan to make the star of a planned ecotourism park in a southern Philippine town, an official said Monday.

Dozens of villagers and experts ensnared the 21-foot male crocodile along a creek in Bunawan township in Agusan del Sur province after a three-week hunt. It could be one of the largest crocodiles to be captured alive in recent years according to local crocodile experts.

About 100 people had to pull the crocodile, which weighs about 2,370 pounds,  from the creek to a clearing where a crane lifted it into a truck.


The crocodile was placed in a fenced cage in an area where the town plans to build an ecotourism park for species found in a vast marshland in Agusan, an impoverished region about 515 miles (830 kilometers) southeast of Manila.

It will be the biggest star of the park and  villagers are happy that they would be able to turn the dangerous crocodile "from a threat into an asset.

Despite the catch, villagers remain wary because several crocodiles still roam the outskirts of the farming town of about 37,000 people.

They have been told to avoid venturing into marshy areas alone at night.

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