Gator with missing top jaw recovering, Florida park says. See ‘little angel’ scarf meal
A young alligator with a missing upper jaw is “doing fantastic” after it was rescued and taken to a Florida park in September, a new video shows.
Jawlene the alligator, who was found by an environmentalist near a canoe launch in Sanford, is making large strides in recovery at her new home at Gatorland, an Orlando theme park with a wide variety of animal habitats on site. The park posted an update video on Instagram Nov. 26 to celebrate her steady improvements from when she first arrived.
“Y’all remember Jawlene?” the park’s president and CEO, Mark McHugh, asked to kick off the video with Dolly Parton’s “Jolene” softly playing in the background.
“Everybody’s favorite alligator!” Gatorland ambassador Savannah Boan answered, holding up the small, jawless reptile.
Since coming to Gatorland, Jawlene has been nursed back to health, McHugh said in the video, aside from having “a few worms in her.” With a couple more treatments to go to rid her of the parasites, McHugh said he thinks the park staff will clear up the health issue soon.
Jawlene has also put on some weight since the park became her new residence — a whole 2 pounds, Boan said in the video.
In a separate update post, Boan praised Jawlene for the positive steps she’s taken for her health, including learning how to be patient with her keepers and not becoming frustrated when she struggles to eat. She called Jawlene’s arrival to Gatorland “a blessing and a wild ride.”
“Jawlene is an incredible testament to the strength and resilience of the great American alligator,” Boan said in her post.
As part of the zoo’s update on Jawlene’s activities, the video showed the alligator swallowing one of her meals whole as the park staff cheered her on.
A big step up for Jawlene may be coming soon, McHugh said, as the park plans to put her in the baby gator marsh before Christmas. This would allow visitors to catch a glimpse of the young alligator, allowing others to show their love and support for her just like staff have been over the past few months, McHugh said.
“She’s a little angel,” Boan said in the video.
This story was originally published November 27, 2023 at 4:34 PM with the headline "Gator with missing top jaw recovering, Florida park says. See ‘little angel’ scarf meal."
