A.M. WELL, THE RESCUE TEAM SAYS A GATOR HAD A BUNGEE CORD WRAPPED AROUND ITS MOUTH WHEN IT WAS FOUND. THATāS RIGHT. AND THAT GATOR IS NOW GETTING SOME TLC. WESH 2āS MICHELLE MEREDITH GOES TO GATORLAND TO SEE HOW ITāS GETTING SOME HELP. BUNGEE. THE ALLIGATOR GOT HIS NAME IN THE MOST PAINFUL WAY. SOMEONE WRAPPED A BUNGEE CORD AROUND HIS MOUTH. NOW THIS ALL HAPPENED IN GAINESVILLE, AND BY THE TIME HE WAS FOUND, THE COURT HAD SLICED INTO HIS UPPER JAW. LOOKS LIKE SOMEBODY MADE A LOOP. PROBABLY TRIED TO CAPTURE HIM ILLEGALLY, AND SOMEHOW THE CORD BROKE OFF AND THIS CORD WAS WRAPPED AROUND HIS JAW. WE DONāT KNOW HOW LONG. SO IF YOUāRE A GATOR THATāS BEEN HURT, NEEDS HELP, NEEDS TO BE RESCUED. WHERE DO YOU GO? WHERE ELSE BUT GATORLAND? THE GATOR DOCS HERE CAREFULLY REMOVED THE BUNGEE CORD, AND NOW HEāS GOT A BIT OF A SCAR FACE LOOK GOING ON. BUT HE IS PERFECTLY HEALTHY. PERFECTLY FINE. OUR VET CAME IN AND CHECKED HIM OUT. DOCTOR BOGAN AND GAVE HIM THE ALL CLEAR. WE DECIDED TO PUT HIM OUT HERE IN OUR BEAUTIFUL TEN ACRE BREEDING MARSH, WHERE HE CAN LIVE OUT THE REST OF HIS LIFE IN ALLIGATOR PARADISE. WHAT KIND OF IDIOT COULD THINK THEY COULD CATCH AN ALLIGATOR WITH A BUNGEE CORD? HEY, WE LIVE IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA. YOU GET FLORIDA MAN STORIES ALL THE TIME, SO WHO KNOWS? AS YOU MIGHT RECALL, IT WAS ABOUT TWO YEARS AGO. A LITTLE GIRL NAMED JOLENE BECAME THE DARLING OF GATORLAND. SOMETHING OR SOMEONE SLICED THE TOP OF HER SNOUT OFF JUST BELOW HER EYES. NOW SHEāS LIVING IN GATOR PARADISE, HANGING OUT WITH HER BEST FRIEND, NELLIE WAFER THE TURTLE. SHE IS DOING VERY EXCELLENT AND SHE IS FEISTY AS ALL. GET OUT! OUR GATOR EXPERT SAYS BUNGEE WILL DO THE SAME. FIND HIS PLACE. GET COMFORTABLE WITH HIS NEW HOME, AND AS ALWAYS IN GATORLAND, HEāLL DO IT WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM HIS PREHISTORIC FRIENDS. REPORTING IN ORANGE COUNTY FROM GATORLAND MICHELLE MEREDITH WESH TWO NEWS. NOW, ALTHOUGH BUNGEE WEIGHS 500 POUNDS AND ITāS TEN FEET LONG COMPARED TO WHERE HE LIVED IN GAINESVILLE, HEāS NOW A LITTLE FISH IN A BIG POND AT GATORLAND, AND EXPERTS
Florida park rescues alligator, names him after his wounds
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Updated: 1:27 PM CDT Jun 18, 2025
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An alligator with a bungee cord embedded in his jaw is recovering at Gatorland, a theme park and preserve in Orlando, Florida, after what rescuers believe was an illegal and failed capture attempt.The gator, now named Bungee, earned his name in a painful way. Rescuers said it appeared someone had wrapped a bungee cord around his mouth. By the time he was found in Gainesvilleās Paynes Prairie, the cord had sliced into his upper jaw and left a visible mark.Video above: Meet Bungee and other Gatorland residentsāIt looks like someone made a loop, probably tried to capture him illegally, and the cord broke off around his jaw,ā Brandon Fisher, a Gatorland employee, said. āWe don't know how long it had been there.āIt took about an hour for Gatorlandās Captain Ron Sanderson, one of the parkās most experienced gator trappers, to capture Bungee and remove him safely.The alligator was then examined by Gatorland veterinarian Dr. Bogan and is now receiving care.āHeās perfectly healthy, perfectly fine,ā Fisher said. āOur vet came in and checked him out ā Dr. Bogan ā gave him the all clear, and we decided to release him into our 10-acre marsh, where he can live out the rest of his days in alligator paradise.āGator experts believe Bungee will adjust, find his place and settle comfortably into his new home.
ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — An alligator with a bungee cord embedded in his jaw is recovering at Gatorland, a theme park and preserve in Orlando, Florida, after what rescuers believe was an illegal and failed capture attempt.
The gator, now named Bungee, earned his name in a painful way. Rescuers said it appeared someone had wrapped a bungee cord around his mouth. By the time he was found in Gainesvilleās Paynes Prairie, the cord had sliced into his upper jaw and left a visible mark.
Video above: Meet Bungee and other Gatorland residents
āIt looks like someone made a loop, probably tried to capture him illegally, and the cord broke off around his jaw,ā Brandon Fisher, a Gatorland employee, said. āWe don't know how long it had been there.ā
It took about an hour for Gatorlandās Captain Ron Sanderson, one of the parkās most experienced gator trappers, to capture Bungee and remove him safely.
The alligator was then examined by Gatorland veterinarian Dr. Bogan and is now receiving care.
āHeās perfectly healthy, perfectly fine,ā Fisher said. āOur vet came in and checked him out ā Dr. Bogan ā gave him the all clear, and we decided to release him into our 10-acre marsh, where he can live out the rest of his days in alligator paradise.ā
Gator experts believe Bungee will adjust, find his place and settle comfortably into his new home.
