The unveiling of Utan (OO’-tan) on June 27th 2002, marked the end of a near three year journey by Dr. Sam Seashole, director of veterinary medicine at Alligator Adventure. To find this “Ambassador of Thailand”, he traveled to Samut Prakan crocodile farm, about 12 miles outside of Bangkok, Thailand and the rest as they say is history. Utan, which was named after the farm owner’s son, Uten Young Prapakarn, was and still is considered the largest crocodile on exhibit in the United States. Utan is a hybrid breed between a salt water and siamese crocodile. He was born in 1964, weighs in at 2000 lbs and is just over 18 ft in length. Utan lives in a 5000 sq. ft exhibit with a luxury pool that contains over 30,000 gallons of fresh water. Utan truly is the “King of Crocs. Fun Fact: Although Utan’s bite force has never been tested, it is said to be estimated at about 5000 lbs. of pressure per square inch. That’s more than two tons!!
