On the prowl for a reptile in Trumbull

Trumbull (WTNH) - Trumbull Police and state environmental officials are keeping an eye out for a reptile, a crocodile or an alligator, that may be roaming around. It would be the second one found in the area in recent weeks.

A baby alligator, about a foot long, was captured about three weeks ago in Canoe Brook Lake.

Jerzy Gajewski of Trumbull is always looking for fish here in Twin Brooks Park. Now he's looking for something else.

"I fish over here every day and I'm watching my feet now. Where I step, will I step on it? People are concerned about it," he said.

The Trumbull Police Department received a call Sunday after someone spotted a two and a half foot long alligator or crocodile swimming in the Pequonnock River in Twin Brooks Park. A police officer came down and actually threw some raw chicken liver into the water as bait, and sure enough, ten minutes later, a pair of bulging eyes appeared out of the water.

Gregg Dancho, Director of the Beardsley Zoo in Bridgeport, says an alligator won't survive long in the Connecticut climate.

"It will do okay in the summertime, but as the wintertime comes it will not survive, so these animals are basically doomed," he said.

The zoo got its alligators from someone who wanted an exotic pets, but then had second thoughts. For folks like that, the zoo is hosting an Amnesty Day on July 25th. Bring in any exotic pet and the DEP will see it gets a good home. Whatever is swimming in Twin Brooks Park was probably dumped by its owner.

The Trumbull Police say they're going to keep an eye out for it. The DEP sent wildlife experts down here on Tuesday, but they never saw it.