An alligator who is missing her upper jaw is now living her best life in Gatorland, but how does this curious creature go about daily life?
I don't need to explain what an alligator is, because we all know what they are and how powerful they can be.
The dinosaur-looking reptiles can really pack a punch... but there's one fan-favorite gator who is unable to bite.
Meet Jawlene.
Named after Dolly Parton's hit song, Jawlene first gained international attention last summer when she was spotted with the top half of her jaw missing.
Eustacia Kanter photographed the gator at a park in Sanford, Florida, on August 29, according to the Guardian.
Katrina Shadix later posted a photo on Facebook asking for help for the injured alligator. The dramatic image showed Jawlene’s exposed tongue and the missing part of her snout.
Wildlife rehabilitator Kim Titterington, whom Shadix contacted, described the gator’s condition as “very shocking.”
He told PEOPLE: “From the image I was provided, the alligator appears to have good body weight, and the injury healed over, but the continued survivability in the wild is slim. It could be from another alligator, but the clean cut also suggests this animal was caught in a hunting snare.”
Jawlene was captured in mid-September and taken to Gatorland, where she is now under care.
I'm sure you have a lot of questions, because when images and videos of Jawlene went viral, people had a lot to say.
"How does it even eat," one person questioned, with a second saying: "Wish we could see how that happened in the first place."
A third person said: "There's a reason why they've been here since the dinosaurs. Unbelievable resilience!"
Well, Tampa Bay Times also had questions, so they sat down with Savannah Boan, Jawlene's caretaker.
Boan described the alligator's unique personality and resilience: "She even snapped at the vet who first visited her," she said.
"Or rather, she tried to snap at him because she seems oblivious to her lack of an upper jaw."
Boan explained how Jawlene has adapted to her condition.
"Based on how we have seen her eat, we think she hunkered down in the shallows. We put something on her tongue, and she puts her bottom jaw up really high, sliding it back to eat."
Jawlene's injury is believed to be the result of a boat propeller or hunter’s snare, according to the trapper who found her. The cut was fully healed when she arrived at Gatorland, but she was significantly underweight.
Feeding Jawlene has presented its own set of challenges. Boan recounted their attempts with various foods, from crickets to shrimp, before discovering her preference for pork and pre-frozen rats.
"We are feeding her twice a week right now to help her gain weight. We put the little pre-killed rat on her tongue, and she slurps it back. I think she likes those the best," Boan said.
Regarding the possibility of a prosthetic jaw, Boan explained the difficulties involved. "She is so small, and this cut is so close to her eyeballs. Plus, she is still growing. Trying to put a prosthetic on her would be challenging and stressful, and reptiles don’t handle stress well."
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