Story at a glance
- A man this month wielded a live caiman in a fight on Macumba beach in Brazil.
- The identities of the men are unknown.
- The caiman was later captured and released by firefighters.
A man involved in a beach brawl in Brazil this month used a wild animal as a weapon against his opponent.
A viral Youtube video uploaded Oct. 25 captures a physical altercation between two men on a beach in Brazil on Oct. 20, with one using a caiman, part of the alligatoridae family, to defend himself.
In the video, the caiman-wielding man thrusts the small reptile toward his opponent after being knocked to the ground, forcing the other man backwards. He’s then made to drop the caiman once the two men are separated by a Macumba beach lifeguard.
It is not known what provoked the fight or why the caiman was there in the first place, though it appears to have arrived on the beach before the men did. It was later captured by firefighters and released in a municipal park in Rio de Janeiro, where the fight took place, the Daily Mail reported.
The identities of the men involved in the altercation are unknown.
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Caimans, found in Central and South America, are related to both alligators and crocodiles and their diet consists mostly of fish. They typically inhabit marshes and swamps and are particular about their environment, making the caiman’s appearance on the beach in the video somewhat of an oddity.
Wild animals have been popping up in populated areas across the world since the pandemic began last year, and creatures ordinarily hidden away from urban areas were seen roaming the streets of emptied cities and towns during widespread lockdowns. Some of those animals have stuck around.
But Brazil, which lifted an outdoor mask mandate this week in Rio de Janeiro, has been infamously relaxed about the pandemic. President Jair Bolsonaro has also resisted national lockdowns, making the caiman’s appearance in the city that much more of a mystery.
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