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Paga,

District Capial of Kassena Nankana West District

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 Nile Crocodiles , Crocodylus niloticus , are considered sacred in Paga ,

      Northern Ghana

Most of the outside world is unaware of the special -- but bizarre -- relationship that exists in Paga between humans and crocodiles.

 

The people of Paga swim joyfully and wash clothes in the same village pond that about 110 Nile crocodiles  use as their home ...

 

No one  know how long the crocodiles have lived in the pond, or how they got to this land-locked area.

                                                                          Live, local weather conditions for Paga

Paga, GHA
Updated 08 February 2012 00:00
Mostly Cloudy
Mostly Cloudy		26°CHigh: 35°C
Low: 21°C
Wind: 4 kph
Humidity: 19%
Clear
Thursday
36° / 21°		Clear
Friday
37° / 23°		Clear
Saturday
38° / 24°		Clear
Sunday
38° / 24°
MSN WeatherData provided by Foreca

                     But no one from the village has ever been harmed by the crocodiles.  

 

Peaceful crocodiles ...

 

"We believe that they are the souls of relatives of this town," 

 

 "They are sacred animals, so we don't hate them, we don't kill them, we don't harm them."

 

One secret to the coexistence may be that the crocodiles here are some of the best-fed animals on the this eath. They have lots of frogs and fish and ..chicken, to snap at or gobble up in the water.

 

 

The chickens are paid for by tourists who come from around the world to sit on the crocs backs, pet them and wag their tails, which could well slice them in two if not attached to a creature so happily digesting a bountiful buffet of birds.

This remote part of northern Ghana is a region with a long and eventful relationship with the Western world. Ghana was the first country in sub-Saharan Africa where Europeans came to trade in gold ..and slaves.

It may seem cruel to sacrifice all these chickens, but the people of Paga point out that if the crocodiles didn't have this feathered fast food, they would kill the town's livestock, enter homes looking for food, and even mistake small children for supper.

 

Besides, according to the the handlers, the crocs have earned their keep because they helped pay for the village day care center through money raised from the hundreds of tourists who visit each month.

 

 

 

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