Crocodile bites handler at Bronx Zoo

A type of crocodile known for its saw-like snout bit a wild animal keeper at the Bronx Zoo on Sunday afternoon, sending him to the hospital with minor injuries, authorities said.

The keeper was cleaning an enclosure housing a type of crocodile called a tomistoma around 2:30 p.m. when the keeper slipped and “a small tomistoma nipped at the left forearm of the keeper,” according to a statement from the Bronx Zoo.

The keeper was treated for a minor wound that did not need stitches at Saint Barnabas Hospital and released, a spokesperson for the zoo said.

The tomistoma, also called the Sunda gharial, is an endangered freshwater crocodile native to Indonesia and Malaysia known for its long, narrow snout. Tomistoma are one of the largest types of crocodiles, with males able to grow up to 16 feet long. In the wild they typically eat fish, crustaceans and small mammals.