Photo: Shanghai Morning Post

Local residents found a dead two-meter long crocodile under the Zhaojia Bridge in Pudong New Area, Shanghai, at around 2 pm on Sunday.

Zhao Bairen, 58, said he was scared when he saw a big thing in the river. "A big thing was in the water and floated under the bridge." Only when he got closer did he discover that it was a crocodile.

Other residents also gathered there to have a look at the reptile.

"It must be that one fell down from a boat into the river," someone guessed.

Some residents used a bamboo pole to prick the crocodile, but it was submerged in the river and never moved.

Zhao used a boat to get close, tied a rope around its mouth and pulled it to the bank with the help from others.

Residents called police, who arrived to take the creature to a nearby station and informed a local forestry station. Local forestry station workers identified that it was young, but did not know where it was from and why it died.

Police and forestry station workers are still seeking answers to how it got there.

Shanghai Morning Post