SINGAPORE: A creature -- feared to be a crocodile -- spotted by residents in the north eastern part of Singapore has been confirmed to be a monitor lizard, said an animal welfare group.
Channel NewsAsia received a hotline call on Tuesday morning that a "crocodile" was seen in the Sengkang river, near a condominium.
The creature, gliding upstream with its head above water, was captured on Channel NewsAsia's camera.
Animal Concerns Research & Education Society (ACRES), which saw the video, confirmed the reptile was a monitor lizard.
Earlier, national water agency PUB and ACRES sent teams to Sengkang river to investigate but the reptile had fled by the time they arrived.
However, the episode led to the question of who should be contacted if a crocodile were spotted in a neighbourhood.
Channel NewsAsia ran a check with various authorities and understands if the reptile was found in a river, a canal or any waterway, PUB should be contacted.
The police said if the reptile was found around the HDB estate, the town council should be alerted.
But whether it's in water or on land, ACRES said it stands ready to respond to any calls of animals in distress.
The Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) told Channel NewsAsia if it receives feedback from the public on wildlife, AVA will coordinate and liaise with the relevant agencies for follow-up action.
Experts said if members of the public see such wildlife, they are advised not to go near or provoke the animal.
ACRES executive director Louis Ng said: "If they are unprovoked, they won't attack. The key thing is to stay a distance from the animal. Don't approach them, don't make a lot of noise.
"Don't stamp on the ground, no sudden movements, then there will be very little public safety concerns."
Crocodiles have been spotted in public in the past, in places such as parks and reservoirs.
- CNA/wk
"Crocodile" seen in Sengkang river
Saifulbahri Ismail Channel NewsAsia 21 Feb 12;
SINGAPORE: Sightings of a creature that looked like a crocodile wading in a river got some residents living in the northeastern part of Singapore worried.
Channel NewsAsia received a hotline call on Tuesday morning that a "crocodile" was seen in the Sengkang river, near the H2O condominium.
The creature -- which looked like a monitor lizard -- was captured on Channel NewsAsia's camera. It was gliding upstream with its head above water.
Both the national water agency PUB and animal welfare group ACRES sent teams to the scene to investigate.
When they got there, the creature had fled the scene and no one could ascertain if it was indeed a crocodile.
The episode led to the question of who should be contacted if a crocodile were spotted in a neighbourhood.
Channel NewsAsia ran a check with various authorities and understands if the reptile was found in a river, a canal or any waterway, PUB should be contacted.
The police said if the reptile was found around the HDB estate, the town council should be alerted.
But whether it's in water or on land, ACRES said it stands ready to respond to any calls of animals in distress.
Crocodiles have been seen in public in the past.
Experts said if the creature spotted in Sengkang river was indeed a crocodile, it is likely to be a species of saltwater crocodile commonly found in Southeast Asia.
If members of public see such wildlife, they are advised not to go near or provoke the creature.
- CNA/wk