An American alligator who was long rumored to have been the pet of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler has died of old age in Russia.
The critter, named Saturn, was 84 — the oldest known age for any of his species.
“Yesterday morning, our Mississippi alligator Saturn died of old age. He was about 84 years old — an extremely respectable age,” Moscow Zoo announced Saturday.
American alligators typically only live until 50, National Geographic notes, and only one other — Muja, who is at Belgrade Zoo in Serbia — is known to have reached his 80s, according to Oldest.org.
“He saw many of us as children,” Moscow zoo said of its “honor” at having cared for Saturn for 74 years.
“We hope that we did not disappoint him.”
Beyond just living for such a long time, Saturn had the most storied life for his species after his birth in Mississippi in 1936.
He was soon gifted to Berlin zoo — and amazingly escaped when it was destroyed by bombing in 1943, with only 100 of the zoo’s 3,500 animals understood to have survived.
He was missing for three years until he was found by British soldiers in 1946 — sparking the wildest theory in his bio.
“Almost immediately, the myth was born that he was allegedly in the collection of Hitler and not in the Berlin Zoo,” the Moscow Zoo conceded.
It is a theory that was never proven — and Saturn should never be tarnished with the despicable crimes of one of history’s most despicable dictators, the zoo said.
“Animals are not involved in war and politics and it is absurd to blame them for human sins,” the zoo noted.
“He came to us after the victory” over Nazi Germany, the zoo said, “and celebrated the 75th anniversary of that victory with us”.
With Post wires
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