A 2-foot caiman found in a pond in Old Bridge on Thursday will be moved to an alligator rescue operation in northeastern Pennsylvania, state officials said.

The state's Division of Fish and Wildlife contacted the Old Bridge Animal Shelter and asked them to remove the caiman from a pond on Brookside Avenue off Englishtown Road, the shelter said.

"It was then transported to Fish and Wildlife so, no, he is not up for adoption. But we have decided we do have some pretty brave and versatile animal control officers," the Old Bridge Animal Shelter said in a lighthearted Facebook post.

The pond is close to Duhernal Lake near the border of Old Bridge and Spotswood.

People frequently purchase alligators in other states and release them into rivers and lakes in New Jersey when they get too big for the aquarium in which they're kept, Department of Environmental Protection Larry Hajna said. Alligators would be unlikely to survive the winter in New Jersey's cold waters. Hajna noted it is illegal to own an alligator in New Jersey.

Fish and Wildlife officials are attempting to find the person who released the alligator into the water.

It appears to have been found by Christoper Vita, an Old Bridge resident who found the alligator while walking his dog. Vita posted a photo on his Facebook page of the alligator covered by a net. Vita didn't immediately reply to a message from NJ Advance Media seeking additional information.

In 2004, a man was seen walking a 4-foot alligator on a leash at a basketball court in the Laurence Harbor section of Old Bridge, according to a report at the time in the Home News Tribune. The alligator was seized and the 25-year-old walking the gator was issued a summons possession of a potentially dangerous species.

Crikey!!!!! Me and Todd just caught an alligator at duhernal!!!!! Posted by Christopher Vita on Thursday, September 13, 2018

Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.