These crocs have been hand fed for years by local boys as a tourist attraction and with the abundance of discarded food waste and garbage in the area these animals have learned to associate man as a food source. Not only is feeding the crocs illegal in Belize, but feeding wild Apex Predators is a very dangerous practice that leads to problematic animals. These animals soon lose their fear of humans and become beggars and scavengers.
On Friday afternoon ACES easily captured a nine foot croc and later that evening captured a 12 foot croc that aggressively approached their golf cart in search of food. On Sunday night ACES scouted the DFC area for more problematic crocs and discovered a dead four foot croc that died from human hands. The croc had been beaten to death and one front leg was removed, most likely as a trophy. It is illegal to kill these animals and anyone needing assistance in dealing with problem crocs should contact the police, BFD or ACES.
Monday, while preparing to transport the captive crocodiles to the mainland via barge, ACES was notified of a third problem croc in the Ambergris Lakes area across from Banyan Bay. BFD had received reports of concern from residents in the area and several pets had apparently fallen prey to the large croc. Within minutes upon arriving on the scene a 12 foot croc, which was basking on the shore was contained. ACES biologist Cherie Chenot-Rose quickly assed that the animal was perhaps the unhealthiest croc she had ever rescued claiming that it was grossly overweight from a poor diet of chicken fed to it by local residents and living in contaminated water. It also displayed no fear of people and was indeed a very dangerous creature.