iStockphoto / Gena Wells
Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium is incredibly fortunate their 36-year-old rare leucistic alligator survived a recent procedure to remove 70 U.S. coins (quarters, dimes, etc) from its stomach.
The coins were thrown into the rare alligator’s enclosure by visitors to the Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium in Omaha, presumably for ‘good luck’ akin to throwing a coin in a fountain and making a wish. The fact that this 36-year-old alligator is leucistic (all white) certainly plays into the ‘luck’ factor from visitors, some believing the alligator is special (it is).
On Facebook, the Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium announced their rare alligator named Thibodaux had underwent the procedure to remove all 70 coins from its stomach. The zoo became aware of the foreign objects after routine examinations (blood collection and radiographs) spotted the metal items in Thibodaux’s stomach.
Christina Ploog, DVM, an associate veterinarian at Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium led the emergency procedure to remove the 70 coins from their rare alligator’s belly. Describing the surgery, she said “A plastic pipe was placed to protect his mouth and safely pass the tools used to access the coins, such as a camera that helped us guide the retrieval of these objects.”
A subsequent x-ray determined all of the metal objects were removed from the leucistic alligator’s stomach. Zoo veterinarian and director of animal health Taylor Yaw said “Though a procedure like the one done on Thibodaux is not always common, it’s a great example of what our animal care and animal health teams do every day across our campus to provide excellent care to our animals.”
This Rare Alligator Has A Fascinating History
The Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium specified the leucistic alligator’s age as 36-years-old which triggered a memory from a recent article I wrote.
Across the country, down near me in Florida at Gatorland, history was made recently when a leucistic alligator became the first-ever leucistic (all-white) alligator born in captivity. Leucistic alligators differ from their albino relatives because they don’t have pink eyes.
The leucistic alligator born at Gatorland was borne from parents born Jeyan and Ashley, two leucistic alligators, who were found in the swamps of Louisiana back in 1987, just as Thibodaux was. Also, as an aside, alligators live between 30 and 50 years old so Thibodaux is quite old already.
Back in 1987, a nest of leucistic alligators was found in Louisiana and today only seven of the all-white alligators are still alive with three of them residing at Gatorland in Orlando. Until the recent birth, no leucistic alligator had ever been born in captivity. The leucistic parents had given birth to normal alligators over the years, including a normal alligator hatched alongside the baby leucistic alligator.
As the only all-white leucistic alligator ever born in captivity, Thibodaux’s niece is being called the ‘rarest alligator in the world’ and she recently received the name ‘Mystic’ by Gatorland.