He didn’t belong here in the first place. Nevertheless, eleven years ago, Ali Baba and fourteen other baby male alligators were flown in to Freeport by Parrot Jungle, then lessee of the Garden of the Groves.
In a misguided and ill-fated attempt to enhance the property’s attraction value by offering zoo-like exhibits of live animals, the alligators were brought in without much apparent thought for their well-being as they grew and matured. After the hurricanes of 2004 devastated the Garden along with much of Grand Bahama, and then Wilma in 2005 added the finishing touches, Parrot Jungle completely abandoned their responsibility for the surviving animals in the summer of 2006.
That summer, the Humane Society of Grand Bahama and Grand Bahama Nature Tours became aware of the plight of the few remaining animals at the Garden, and assisted in rescuing and re-homing a number of animals, including peacocks, ducks, and the surviving pigs and goats who had been featured in the “petting zoo”. Ali Baba was the sole surviving alligator. Fifteen mature alligators could not live in the small enclosure originally built for them; some had died prior to the hurricanes and the rest soon after.
For the past two years, Sameir Wildgoose, Field Services Officer for the Humane Society, visited the Garden twice a week with raw chicken and turkey meals for Ali Baba. Grand Bahama Nature Tours enlisted the help of UNEXSO who provided raw fish for Ali’s weekend meals. All the while, HSGB and GBNT were working with David Hitzig, Executive Director of the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary in Jupiter, Florida in an attempt to re-export Ali Baba to his country of origin. Because he was captive bred in Florida, and because alligators are recognized as threatened species by the CITES treaties, of which both the Bahamas and the U.S. are signatories, the red tape and delays were extensive.
Finally, almost two years later, last Thursday, June 26th, David Hitzig, Deania Hitzig and Shannon Wiyda from the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary flew in to Freeport and on Friday, handled and supervised the safe capture and crating of Ali Baba, who is now 11 years old and well over 10 feet long. The whole process went very smoothly and Ali Baba was handled humanely and gently. Bob Clutter of GB Express flew in first thing Saturday morning to pick up Ali Baba and Mr. Hitzig for the flight to Miami and after clearing Customs there, flew them to Jupiter.
David Hitzig reported via email late Saturday that “Ali made the trip just fine. Bob Clutter (pilot) was very helpful at every point along the way and took extra time to make sure we had smooth take-offs and landings. We landed in Miami after a 45 minute flight. Both the Customs agents and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service personnel were very cooperative and helpful. We were on the ground in Miami only a short time and then back in the air headed to Jupiter. We landed at a small airport about 15 minutes from the Sanctuary.
Bob's airplane was the largest aircraft at the airport. Everyone came out to photograph the unusual looking flying box carrying a crated alligator for cargo.
Ali was in the water and swimming around by 2:00pm. He will live in a controlled captive natural habitat where he will be able to live naturally with other alligators. Thank you to all that helped; everything from capture to release went very smoothly!”
Erika Gates of Grand Bahama Nature Tours said “This is the day we have been working towards for the past two years. Busch Wildlife Sanctuary in Jupiter, Florida is not an animal exhibit but a wildlife rescue facility with experts who are devoted to making life better for all animals they take in.
This rescue operation has been a team effort between the Humane Society and Grand Bahama Nature Tours who both cared for the animal over the past two years, the Dolphin Experience, who never failed to provide the necessary fish, Bahamas Agriculture and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Authorities and, of course, David Hitzig who tirelessly negotiated and fought for the re-importation of the animal back to the U.S.
The total effort, however, to provide better living conditions for Ali could not have been reached without the support of the Grand Bahama Port Authority who committed to this rescue effort from the beginning."
The Humane Society must thank Albacore Construction’s crew who gladly helped with the lifting of Ali’s crate into the plane at the airport Saturday morning. Thanks also to the numerous residents over the past two years who have been concerned and inquired about the safety and health of Ali Baba.
Being bred in captivity, and thus accustomed to and dependent on humans meant that Ali Baba was not a candidate for a wild release. His only hope was for a sanctuary/refuge such as the Busch facility to agree to take him in. Many thanks to all those who persevered to make it happen, including The Pegasus Foundation, and the Bahamas Ministry of Agriculture, particularly Dr. Geoffrey Lynne, Dr. Godfrey Springer, and Melanie Williams; and most of all, the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary for providing a permanent home for Ali Baba.
To those who might ask why all this fuss for a single alligator – a much maligned and misunderstood species usually represented in the news only for “attacks”, most of which are provoked by humans - the HSGB would reply that all God’s creatures were put here for a purpose, not for us to necessarily understand but that we should honor nonetheless. Animals bred or captured for human exploitation deserve special consideration from any humane point of view, and the HSGB is proud to have been a part of this extraordinary story.
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