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November 24, 2009
Casper the White Crocodile –
A Real Shocker
By Robin M. Bennefield

They have a phrase here in Australia for something wild and out of control. They say, "That was a real shocker," or "What a shocker," to describe someone or something that is a little on the edge. That's Casper, the 11 1/2-foot golden croc featured in Croc Hunter Live's "Casper — The White Crocodile."

The rare white croc — today, one in 100 can be found in the wild — was relocated from a small park in Kimberley, in northwestern Australia.

Watching Casper lunge at Brian Coulter, head croc keeper at the zoo, as he tries to clean Casper's temperature-controlled pond, you're sure that he is, indeed, a real shocker.

"He's the most unpredictable croc at the zoo," says Brian, who helped relocate the croc last November, flying with him, Steve and Wes in a World War II plane from Kimberley to Queensland.

"He's fast out of the water, and he'll chase you on land," he says.

Which makes it hard for Brian and Kelsey Engle, zoo curator, to clean out Casper's enclosure for filming on Friday. Kelsey keeps a watchful eye on the croc, while Brian tries to close off the fresh water refilling the pond. Casper is entertained by Kelsey for a moment, leaping out of the water onto land and chasing her toward the fence, but the second Brian steps into the water he's on to him. Kelsey tries to catch Casper's tail, but he's too quick; Brian has to get out and try again later.

The zoo staff is hoping that a girl will smooth out Casper's high-strung personality. Days before Croc Hunter Live started, Brian and fellow zoo crew member Brendan McGill traveled up to far northern Queensland to Cape York Peninsula to find Wendy, also a white croc, to be Casper's mate.

Brian says it worked for Agro, once the zoo's most aggressive croc (thus the name). Agro became more relaxed, for a croc, with the addition of his girlfriends, Cookie and Lucy.

Casper's intended is rather small at the moment, measuring 3 1/2 feet long, and a bit young. The crew will need to feed Wendy and get her strong enough to mate with a big bloke like Casper. She needs to gain about 5 more feet in length before she'll be ready.

Stay tuned to future Crocodile Hunter episodes to see if it is a match made in Australia Zoo heaven. Hopefully, this romance won't end as painfully as the one with Toolekea, the last gal the zoo tried to fix up with Casper.

MORE>>Zoo Crew on the Set>>

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