Uptown Manhattan got an unlikely visitor on Thursday.
An alligator was spotted crossing Ninth Avenue near 205th Street, according to a tweet from the 34th Precinct that featured the hashtag #whatnext.
So this alligator was crossing 9th Ave in #Inwood...no, really. At 205 Str. Cops took him to Animal Control #whatnext pic.twitter.com/EG5Z3bkQPl
— NYPD 34th Precinct (@NYPD34Pct) July 23, 2015
According to the precinct, police took the reptile to Animal Care and Control, the nonprofit that manages the city’s shelter system.
The sighting set off a string of alligator-inspired jokes on Twitter:
@NYPD34Pct did the cops say see you later when they dropped him off? #Inwood
— Rachel Figueroa (@Jewyorican) July 23, 2015
@NYPD34Pct are you sure this isn't some harebrained hipster ad campaign for #Lacoste ?
— Dan Mangan (@_DanMangan) July 24, 2015
This is not the first unusual animal sighting of the year in Inwood. In April, a harbor seal took up residence in the Spuyten Duyvil Creek, making several appearances to sunbathe on a local dock.
UPDATE:
Alexandra Silver, a spokeswoman for Animal Care and Control, reported that the alligator that police brought in on Thursday evening died Friday morning. The cause of his death was unclear, she said.
"Sadly the alligator, which staff had named CockadoodleQ, died this morning," Silver said in an email. "We have no knowledge of the conditions CockadoodleQ had lived in prior to his arrival that contributed to his death."
CockadoodleQ was 3-feet-long and was brought into the shelter by members of the NYPD's emergency services team, Silver said.
When the alligator arrived at the shelter, the medical staff found that duct tape had placed on his snout. They removed the tape and put the reptile in an aquarium with shallow pool of water and heating element, Silver said.
Silver cautioned readers that the alligator, which may have been an abandoned pet, was not allowed in New York City.
"Exotic animals such as alligators are illegal to have as pets in New York City," she said.