ZAMBOANGA CITY -- A young saltwater crocodile was captured along the coast of Turtle islands in Tawi-Tawi by local residents who failed to catch the elder crocodile after it swam into the deepest portion of the sea.
Turtle Island municipal Mayor Mohammad Faizal H. Jamalul said on Wednesday that a local resident of Barangay Likud Bakkaw captured the young crocodile at about 7 a.m., Monday near the shoreline of the village.
The mayor said the elder crocodile immediately swam into the deep portion of the sea after seeing the local residents heading towards the area.
The crocodile, with scientific name Crocodylus Porosus, measures about 36 inches and is brackish, Jamalul told the Manila Bulletin.
He said the residents tried to catch the young reptile on four different occasions but failed due to the strength of the salt water crocodile.
“On Tuesday morning at about 7 a.m., the residents of the village were able to catch him but failed to catch the elder reptile,” the mayor said.
The mayor said the crocodile did not harm the people living along the village.
“Probably, the reptile was just looking for a new habitat where they could live,” he said.
Jamalul said he asked officials of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to release the reptile into the sea three hours after it was captured.
The release of the reptile into the sea was witnessed by Mayor Jamalul, DENR officials, town officials, and the chief of the Municipal Tourism Office Miss Abrille Yusop Oraiz.
Oraiz said it was the first time that local residents of the municipality saw a reptile visiting the shoreline of the town.
They normally witness turtles of different species visiting the shore to lay their eggs, Oraiz said.