The Bronx Zoo’s Southern Boulevard entrance. (Alex Mitchell)
A Bronx Zoo animal keeper was hospitalized after being bitten by a crocodile at the wildlife center on Sunday afternoon, police said.
According to law enforcement sources, a 38-year-old male zookeeper was feeding the reptile at around 2:45 p.m. on May 24 when he “sustained a small bite” to his left arm.
A zoo spokesperson told amNewYork in a statement that the keeper was cleaning an enclosure, and after slipping, was “nipped” in the forearm by a small tomistoma, a type of freshwater crocodilian.
Police said the keeper was brought to St. Barnabas Hospital in stable condition.
The zoo spokesperson said the keeper was treated and released “for a minor wound” that did not need stitches.
The tomistoma, native to Malaysia and Indonesia, is classified as endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources.
