DETROIT (WWJ) -- The famed Belle Isle alligator has been caught, and taken safely to a new home in the suburbs.
According to the folks at the Great Lakes Serpentarium in Westland, the owner of Spartan Canine Training, Stephen Hart, spent eight hours on Wednesday hunting for the reported gator — that was all the buzz on the Detroit island.
Hart told reporters he went up and down the shoreline at the island park early on the morning all day long, until he finally found the small reptile under a tree. He cornered the gator, and another man with a net helped capture it. The two men who teamed up for this feat did not know each other.
The Michigan Department of Natural Resources had earlier confirmed sightings of the gator, seen in videos shared to social media, saying the reports were credible. The DNR said it did not believe the reptile posed a threat visitors.
While the gator did not seem to be bothering anyone, there were concerns that it may not be able to survive a frigid winter in Detroit.
Once captured. the alligator — a female — was sent to the new Great Lakes Serpentarium in Westland, where she'll be well taken care of.
"When I heard about this, I thought nobody's gonna catch it; it's definitely gonna freeze," Serpentarium director Michael Wilson told WWJ's Tim Pamplin and other reporters on Thursday.
Wilson said this was very likely a pet that was abandoned by its owner when it got too big.
"Man, it is a very cute pet, but these are not good pets. They're hard to keep, and it's a huge dedication," Wilson said. "I put my life into keeping these kinds of animals. And unless you're willing to do something like that, I don't recommend it."
The gator is young, in good health, and expected to max out at 7 or 8 feet long.
The public will have a chance to visit the locally-famous reptile when the Serpentarium opens on Halloween.