It was a sad day for staff at Paignton Zoo

It was a sad day for staff at Paignton Zoo today as a crocodile was found dead.

Staff said the 35-year-old Nile crocodile had been acting strangely for several days and was under observation by staff, but was found dead on Wednesday in its Crocodile Swamp attraction.

Mike Bungard, curator of lower vertebrates and invertebrates, said: "Crocodiles are very good at hiding illness and very difficult to diagnose.

"He was seen to be lethargic the other day and he was under observation by our in-house vet team because he was not eating normally – though crocodiles can go for long periods without eating."

The crocodile was one of a pair that came to the zoo near Torquay from Wroclaw Zoo in Poland in 2008.

It was born in a zoo in the Czech Republic.

A post-mortem examination on the 10ft crocodile will be carried out to find out the cause of death.