LOS ANGELES, Aug. 16 Reggie, the alligator who became a celebrity in Los Angeles when he lived for two years in a park, escaped from his habitat at the LA zoo this week.
The alligator was found the morning after he busted out of the zoo, napping next to a loading dock, The Los Angeles Daily News reported. The opening of the zoo for the day was delayed while Reggie was wrangled back home.
"He's quite a character," said John Lewis, director of the Los Angeles Zoo. "I think he was just curious, and he found a spot he could negotiate. It's been so hot lately, so that's great for reptiles. It charges them up. He wanted to take a cruise, and he did."
Reggie's habitat has been made more escape-proof, or so zoo officials hope.
Now more than 6 feet long, Reggie was abandoned by his owner and lived for two years in Machado Lake in Ken Malloy Harbor Regional Park. He was finally captured on May 24 after baffling some of the country's leading alligator wranglers.
Copyright 2007 by UPI
