From Avignon to New York, a summer of ‘gators

Reptiles are on the loose in France – and this time it's for real. Last week a minor panic ensued among bathers in the port of Boulogne when it was reported that a 12ft crocodile had been spotted in the Channel. Swimming was forbidden as coastguards took to the waters in search of the reptile, with wildlife experts warning that the croc would likely be cold, tired and in need of a good meal. As more sightings came in, coastguards finally caught up with their prey – only to discover it was a 12ft piece of driftwood.

But now comes another alert after a crocodile farm in Pierrelatte, 40 miles north of Avignon in southern France, discovered that two of its 350 inmates had done a reptile runner.

The pair – two Chinese alligators – went missing at the end of July and the farm's owners initially thought they had been stolen, a not uncommon event as their skin is worth tens of thousands of euros on the black market. But in recent days evidence has been found indicating that the alligators are alive and well, and enjoying life on the run in the surrounding countryside.

"Traces of their presence have been discovered and we now have a good hope of finding them," said a police spokesman, who did his best to reassure the public that the three-feet reptiles were unlikely to pose a threat to humans. "These are young alligators with jaws hardly any bigger than a poodle's, so no one will get eaten."

The National Office for Hunting and Wildlife is coordinating the hunt for the alligators (which can grow to 7ft) and stressed the urgency of finding the beasts as soon as possible. "They can't endure temperatures below five degrees, so it’s critical that we find them before the winter sets in," said a spokesperson.
 
Meanwhile, across the alligator pond, Americans have had reptile problems of their own in recent days. At the weekend a passer-by got the shock of her life while strolling down Newtown Ave in the Queen’s district of New York when, from out of a drain, popped a 1.5ft alligator. "Crocodile!" yelled the passer-by, though the police Emergency Service Unit that lassoed the reptile later confirmed it was an alligator.

"It could have been dumped from a car or it could have come out of a sewer," said NYPD spokesman James Duffy of the one-year-old alligator that is reportedly on its way to a reptile sanctuary.

And in a suburb of Boston, 47-year-old firefighter Scott Hurst was on his way to work last weekend when he had to swerve to avoid a 3ft alligator out for a Sunday morning stroll. "Originally I thought it was a lizard, like an iguana, but when I got closer I realised it wasn't that," Hurst told reporters.

Displaying the pluck for which his profession is known, Hurst jumped out of his truck and grabbed the 'gator by the collar round its neck. He then bound it with a bungee cord and waited for the police to arrive.

It’s believed the alligator was being kept as a pet in someone's backyard until its break for freedom. "I've never come across anything like that before,” Hurst said. "There's a lot of kids in the neighbourhood. I didn't want anyone losing a finger."

For readers of a certain age, the tales will reawaken memories of the magnificently bad B-movie of 30 years ago, Alligator, about a discarded baby 'gator that grows huge in the sewers of Chicago before eating half the city’s population. The French will have their fingers crossed that life doesn't imitate art. ·