Čabulītis (''

fl. ''Floruit'' ( ; usually abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for 'flourished') denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indic ...

'' 1935 – 21 August 2007) was a captive American Alligator residing at the

Riga Zoo Riga Zoo is a city-owned zoo in Riga, Latvia. It is located in Mežaparks neighbourhood next to the Mežaparks park, on the western bank of Ķīšezers lake. Riga Zoo houses around 4000 animals of nearly 500 species and is visited by 250–30 ...

Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

. At time of his death he was thought to be one of the oldest captive alligators in Europe. Information at the Riga Zoo, dated 1 April 1935, suggests that he was 1 to 3 years old on arrival.

Physical characteristics and diet

He was long and weighed . In 1958, 1970, and 1980 due to problems with heating of the crocodile house, Čabullītis would not consume food for periods of 5 to 7 months. Otherwise he normally ate about of beef twice a week in addition to chicken once a week. He also liked herring, but refused to eat furry or live animals.

Biography

In Latvian, Čabulītis roughly translates to ''sweet and tender creature''. At various times, the alligator was also known by the names Ulmanītis, Ali and

Gena Ethiopian Christmas (; ; ) is a holiday celebrated by the Ethiopian Orthodox and Eritrean Orthodox churches, as well as Protestant and Catholic denominations in Ethiopia, on 7 January (Tahsas 29 in the Ethiopian calendar). One of the distinct fe ...

. Three other alligators about the same age lived at the zoo in the 1930s two females and a male. The other male was moved to the

Kyiv Zoo The Kyiv Zoo (, ) is the largest zoo in Kyiv, Ukraine, and one of the largest in the former Soviet Union. Situated on about , the zoo is cared for by 378 staff members and receives about 280,000 visitors annually. History The Kyiv Zoo was founde ...

in 1965. Both females were

euthanized Animal euthanasia (euthanasia from ; "good death") is the act of killing an animal humanely, most commonly with injectable drugs. Reasons for euthanasia include incurable (and especially painful) conditions or diseases, lack of resources to con ...

in the 1970s due to illnesses caused by injuries sustained in fights. Since that time Čabulītis was the only alligator in the zoo. In the 1980s an

American crocodile The American crocodile (''Crocodylus acutus'') is a species of crocodilian found in the Neotropics. It is the most widespread of the four Extant taxon, extant species of crocodiles from the Americas, with populations present from South Florida, ...

, Balodītis (i.e., ''little dove''), was housed in a room next to Čabulītis. (The ranges of the two species do overlap in the wild part of

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

.) Balodītis once managed to get into Čabulītis' room by climbing over the wall at night. As they didn't fight, Balodītis was allowed to share space until Čabulītis grew more aggressive and the reptiles were separated again. Čabulītis enjoyed being sprayed with warm water, having his back brushed, and he would roar when he heard the music of German pop duo

Modern Talking Modern Talking was a German pop duo consisting of arranger, songwriter and producer Dieter Bohlen and singer Thomas Anders. They have been referred to as Germany's most successful pop duo, and have had a number of hit singles, reaching the to ...

. In the last ten years of his life, Čabulītis lost an increasing number of teeth and his movements became slower, causing visitors to wonder if the alligator was even alive. He spent a lot of time in the water as it became difficult for him to walk on dry land. Čabulītis died of lung disease and heart failure. A memorial was planned for Čabulītis, and his remains were stuffed and exhibited in the zoo along with his skeleton.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cabulitis 1930s animal births 2007 animal deaths Individual alligators Individual animals in Latvia

Physical characteristics and diet

Biography

See also

References