Following reports that an alligator, seemingly abandoned in a Prospect Park lake in Brooklyn in February, had been taken in by the Bronx Zoo and was being cared for there, it’s been reported that, in the meantime, the alligator, nicknamed “Godzilla” has sadly since died.

 

In a statement released on April 21, Bronx Zoo officials said, “The alligator found on Sunday, 19 February 2023 in 37-degree Fahrenheit temperature at Prospect Park Lake and taken to the Bronx Zoo has died. Despite extensive ongoing medical treatment, nutritional support and the successful removal of a bathtub stopper she had ingested while illegally kept as a pet, the alligator died on Sunday, 16 April.”

 

The statement continued, “A necropsy revealed chronic and severe weight loss, extreme anemia, and infections in her intestine and skin. She also had a chronic ulcer of her stomach caused by the rubber stopper. Despite the intensive care, the alligator was so emaciated, debilitated, and anemic, her immune system was not as strong as it needed to be and she succumbed to those infections.”

 

Officials concluded, “This was a tragic case of animal abuse. Alligators and other wild animals do not belong in the pet trade or in people’s homes. This alligator suffered and died because its owner decided to dump her in a frigid lake, in an extremely debilitated state rather than provide her with the veterinary care that could have saved her. Wild animals are not pets.”

 

Earlier this year when the alligator was first discovered, the Bronx Zoo released the following statement. “The American alligator recovered from a lake in Prospect Park on February 19 is undergoing medical evaluation at the Bronx Zoo by veterinarians and animal care staff. The alligator, which was lethargic and suffering from exposure to cold temperatures, is extremely emaciated.”

 

Officials said that after arriving at the Bronx Zoo, the animal was slowly warmed to an appropriate ambient temperature and received supportive care. “Too weak and unresponsive to eat on its own, the alligator, a female, is being tube-fed to provide her with nutrients as well as fluids, Vitamin B, antibiotics and an antifungal medication,” they said.

 

The Bronx Zoo, located on 265 acres of hardwood forest in Bronx, NY, opened on Nov. 8, 1899. According to its representatives, it is world-renowned for its leadership in the areas of animal welfare, husbandry, veterinary care, education, science and conservation. The zoo is accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) and is the flagship park of the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) which manages the world’s largest network of urban wildlife parks including the Bronx Zoo, Central Park Zoo, Prospect Park Zoo, Queens Zoo and New York Aquarium.

 

“Our curators and animal care staff work to save, propagate, and sustain populations of threatened and endangered species,” Bronx Zoo officials said. “We have educated and inspired more than 400 million visitors at our zoos and aquarium since our opening and host approximately 4 million guests at our parks each year, including about a half-million students annually.”

 

Officials said the Bronx Zoo is the largest youth employer in the borough of The Bronx, providing opportunity, and helping to transform lives in one of the most under-served communities in the nation. The Bronx Zoo is also the subject of THE ZOO, a docuseries aired worldwide on Animal Planet, as previously reported.