A 3m-long crocodile gave bathers at Cape Vidal beach in the Greater St Lucia Wetland Park the surprise of their lives this week, the Mercury newspaper reported on Tuesday.
Its website said the reptile wandered down in the surf on Sunday, possibly from nearby Lake Bhangazi. It ended up in the main rockpool.
Bemused beachgoers watched from a safe distance as wildlife officials moved into action. Headed by St Lucia Crocodile Centre manager Chantal Dickson, they noosed and retrieved the large female.
The crocodile was later released on the eastern shores of Lake St Lucia near Catalina Bay.
It was not clear how long it had been in the sea, but Dickson said the reptile was in ”fairly good condition”.
Crocodile sightings along the Zululand coast are relatively common, with bodies of fresh water being close to the ocean.
Crocodiles are probably being driven there in greater numbers by a continuing drought, the Mercury reported. – Sapa