Max (Saltwater Crocodile)

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Max (recorded in April 2011)

Max (* around 1956; † July 6, 2015 in Dresden ) was a saltwater crocodile that had become a public favorite and unofficial mascot for decades in the Dresden Zoo . The crocodile, almost five meters long and weighing more than 400 kilograms, was around 60 years old.

Life

Max came on October 2, 1958 as an unnamed two, about two years of saltwater crocodiles from the Tierpark Berlin in the Dresden Zoo . Whether the crocodile was born in the Berlin zoo or in Asia can no longer be traced, since at that time all animal deliveries for zoos in the GDR were handled via Berlin. According to Richard Weigl ( Frankfurt Zoo ), Max was the male crocodile that the Indonesian researcher H. Kern of the West Berlin Robert Koch Institute sent from Sumatra to the Berlin Zoo in early September 1958 . The presentation of the crocodile was intended to increase the attractiveness of the Dresden Zoo, which was badly destroyed in the Second World War. The crocodile was about 60 cm long when it arrived. It probably got its name "Max" from the head of the terrarium at the time, Franz Dünnebier. At the same time, the zoo owned a Mississippi alligator named "Moritz" ( Max and Moritz ).

In the first few years, Max was kept in a shed-like temporary facility together with a few other alligators , Nile and Cuba crocodiles . On the occasion of the 100th zoo anniversary, a new terrarium was built in 1961, in which the crocodile found its new place in a larger enclosure with a water basin and a small island. It was housed here until 2010. With increasing height, Max became a visitor favorite and the most popular zoo inhabitant. A long-time keeper and head of the Zoofreunde Dresden association said: “Over the years, Max has developed into a true institution in the zoo. If you ask in Dresden for the name of the zoo director, hardly anyone will know the correct answer. But everyone knows Max ”.

When the Prof. Brandes House was opened in 2010 , Max moved into a significantly enlarged terrarium in this building. When the last measurement was taken in early 2015, the crocodile was around 4.90 meters long and weighing around 430 kilograms, making it the largest saltwater crocodile in a European zoo. His size was also the reason that Max was kept in a larger pool without a partner even after moving, as no adequate female animal could be obtained.

In early May 2015, his health deteriorated significantly. Max wasn't eating properly anymore, was weak and lethargic . Bad blood counts indicated decreased kidney function. An investigation, for which three national reptile experts from Munich, Augsburg and Berlin traveled, showed that an inflammation of the claw of the right forefoot had already reached the bone. Max probably got this injury in early May. Initially, his condition was stabilized again with antibiotics, ointments and disinfectant solutions. However, he later refused to eat again. On the morning of July 6, 2015, he was found lifeless in his enclosure.

Investigations after his death

Skull in the Senckenberg Museum für Naturkunde Görlitz

After his death, Max was taken to the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research in Berlin for a pathological examination . The cause of death was high-grade purulent inflammation of the right shoulder joint and purulent bronchitis with lung abscesses. After completing the examinations, the body was handed over to the Senckenberg Natural History Collections in Dresden , where a skeleton specimen is to be produced for research purposes. A sculpture of the skull is exhibited in the Prof. Brandes House. A permanent reminder in the form of a plaque or memorial is also being considered.

literature

  • Juliane Richter: Quiet finish of a favorite. In: Saxon newspaper. July 7, 2015 sz-online

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b dpa, Arno Burgi: Saltwater crocodile Max died in the Dresden Zoo. In: focus.de. FOCUS Online, July 6, 2015, accessed on July 10, 2015 : "Visitor Favorite"
  2. ↑ a b ml: Mourning for the public's favorite: Crocodile Max died in Dresden Zoo. In: bild.de. Axel-Springer, July 6, 2015, accessed on July 10, 2015 : "Max had become a kind of mascot for the zoo."
  3. ↑ a b After a serious illness: Dresden Zoo mourns the loss of the crocodile "Max". (No longer available online.) In: mdr.de. Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk, July 6, 2015, archived from the original on July 10, 2015 ; Retrieved July 10, 2015 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.mdr.de
  4. ↑ a b c d Juliane Richter: Quiet finish of a favorite . In: Saxon newspaper . Dresdner Druck- und Verlagshaus GmbH & Co. KG, Dresden July 7, 2015, p. 18 ( sz-online.de [accessed on July 10, 2015] "Yesterday the estuarine crocodile Max died. The zoo is thus losing its last great animal personality.").
  5. ↑ fs: Mourning in the Dresden Zoo: Saltwater crocodile Max is dead. In: DNN-Online. Verlag Dresdner Nachrichten GmbH & Co.KG, July 6, 2015, accessed on July 10, 2015 .
  6. ↑ Anneke Müller: Kriegt crocodile Max a monument? How Mäxchen actually got to Dresden Zoo. (No longer available online.) In: MOPO24. July 9, 2015, archived from the original on July 11, 2015 ; Retrieved July 10, 2015 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / mopo24.de
  7. ^ Richard Weigl: Longevity of Crocodilians in Captivity . In: International Zoo News . tape 61/5 , no. 408 (September / October), 2014, p. 363–373, here 371 ( izn.org.uk [PDF; 46.0 MB ]). izn.org.uk ( Memento of the original from September 28, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.izn.org.uk
  8. ↑ Juliane Richter: Great concern for the crocodile Max . In: Saxon newspaper . Dresdner Druck- und Verlagshaus GmbH & Co. KG, Dresden June 6, 2015 ( sz-online.de [accessed July 10, 2015] "One of the most popular zoo animals is seriously ill. It may have to be put to sleep on Tuesday.").
  9. ↑ Sick reptile - Dresdeners fear crocodile Max. In: n-tv.de. Nachrichtenmanufaktur GmbH, June 9, 2015, accessed on July 10, 2015 : “[…] 60 year old estuarine crocodile. [...] Audience favorite Max [...]. "
  10. ↑ Juliane Richter: Inflamed foot slows Max . In: Saxon newspaper . Dresdner Druck- und Verlagshaus GmbH & Co. KG, Dresden June 10, 2015 ( sz-online.de [accessed July 10, 2015]).
  11. ^ Cause of death of crocodile "Max" announced , Dresden-Fernsehen, July 13, 2015.
  12. ↑ Juliane Richter: Krokodil Max now serves science. In: Saxon newspaper. July 8, 2015 sz-online