Hong Kong, Nov 29: A wily crocodile that became a local celebrity after eluding capture for weeks stayed out of sight today as mainland Chinese experts surveyed for the second day the murky creek where the reptile was last spotted. Chinese croc expert He Zhanzhao, from Panyu in neighbouring Guangdong province, took up the hunt yesterday after an Australian expert conceded defeat. Crocodile farmer John Lever from Queensland in northeastern Australia spent two weeks trying - and failing - to bag the 1.2 metre reptile.
China's He told reporters that catching the scaly creature - first spotted in the creek on November 2 - wouldn't be easy.
"The creek is big ... There are a lot of weeds, so it is very suitable for the crocodile to live there. It presents some difficulties," said he, whose comments were broadcast by local network.
Hong Kong's commercial radio reported that he and his colleague Li Mingjian returned to Panyu late today to consider how best to catch the beast. They do not plan to return until it reappears.
Meanwhile Lever, who initially boasted that he could just "walk in and grab" the reptile, prepared to return home.
"At the outset the capture did not seem a difficult task and I anticipated being in Hong Kong for a few days only, but it has now been two weeks," Lever wrote in a letter faxed to a news agency.
"Sadly I have not been able to satisfy ... The expectations of the Hong Kong people and this disappoints me greatly," he said. Bureau Report