Residents in a South Miami neighborhood woke up to an unwanted guest Wednesday morning when a 10-foot crocodile was spotted walking through front yards.
The crocodile was found in the 6900 block of Southwest 65th Avenue where it briefly lounged on a front porch before taking a rest between two homes.
When a worker from Pesky Critters Wildlife Control came to take the croc away, it started hissing and snapping. Within a matter of minutes, the critter wrangler was able to get the croc under control and into the back of his truck.
Javier Tobares, who lives in the home where the croc stopped, said he was sleeping when he heard his dog growling.
"I come outside and I see all these guys around a pretty big crocodile. It's pretty interesting, I never seen that so close," Tobares said. "It was a big, big crocodile."
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation officer George Pino says the crocodile very likely came from the canal behind the house. Pino says it's very common for crocs to end up in the waterways in South Miami and Coral Gables.
South Florida's salt water crocs live mostly in the area between Monroe and Miami-Dade counties, near Turkey Point. They often make their way up through the canals, which are like tunnels criss-crossing South Florida.
