New Jersey is home to exotic inhabitants, participants in relentless urban sprawl and frivolous debates over breakfast meats, good schools and a veritable pick of the denim-clad litter of Garden State musicians like Springsteen, Bon Jovi ... and Springsteen.

Such is the state's draw that even exotic animals like the colorful Mandarin Duck have decided to call New Jersey their home, however brief their stays. Here are a few other times when some exotic animals were either stranded in New Jersey or deliberately decided to come through the state.

The Monk Parakeets of Edgewater

Despite sounding like the title of a 1920s children's book, the Monk parakeets of Edgewater is a true story.

Contrary to rumors of a great escape from a shipping crate arriving from South America, the lime green birds in North Jersey are more likely here from their native Argentina because they were annoying.

Sometime in the 1960s, thousands of the birds were imported to New Jersey. Their incessant chirping was likely reason enough for some people to let them loose. The birds we see on telephone poles in Edgewater, Ridgefield and Palisades Park are probably descendants of those emancipated few.

Every year, Monk parakeets' elaborate nests are destroyed for being a municipal nuisance. And every year Monk parakeets are admired for their bright color and for being the most fluorescent feathered ex-pat in the state.

Savannah cat stalks Silk City

Last year, an F1 savannah cat was seen stalking the streets of Paterson, intriguing a few and terrifying most. Residents reported seeing the large mixed-breed African cat roaming Mill Street, and most descriptions were some variation of "very big cat."

Some people like to keep the cats as pets because they act "more like a family dog," according to one breeder at the time. Since the savannah cat was acting less like a family dog and more like a massive wild cat, animal control officers swooped in and shot the cat with a tranquilizer.

It was taken to Wildlife Freedom Inc. in Wanaque, where it was to be held until the Division of Fish and Wildlife picked it up.

Aside from their size, another fact that stands out about savannah cats is their potential asking price: anywhere between $10,000 and $20,000.

Alligators love New Jersey

Based on the sheer frequency of alligator sightings, alligator owners seem to often underestimate how big and how fast the reptiles can grow.

In the past two years alone, at least five alligators of varying ages and sizes have been found in suburban New Jersey.

In September, a baby alligator was found at the end of a street in Old Bridge, near Duhernal Lake, likely abandoned by its owner. Days later, in Mullica, a 2 to 3 foot long alligator terrorized the neighborhood, with police warning residents to be on the lookout.

In July 2015, a 4-to-5- foot alligator was found in the Passaic River in Elmwood Park.

By most accounts, the amphibians outgrow their stays at their respective owner's houses, leaving owners what they see as the only option: dump the carnivores near murky ponds and lakes and scare people into a frenzy.

Bull on parade

Like a bovine Shawshank Redemption, a 1,400-pound bull escaped from a Paterson slaughterhouse in 2009, feeling the September sunlight on its jet black pelt before its eventual capture.

As it was being unloaded from a truck into Ena Meatpacking, the bull took off, running a few blocks through the industrial district of Paterson.

The bull put up a valiant last stand, battling slaughterhouse workers and police alike, dragging more than five men as they tried to lasso him. Ultimately the bull's battle ended with authorities corralling him, injecting him with sedative and hauling him off.

The bull was killed later, then deemed "unfit for consumption" because of the drugs used to sedate him.

Nearly a decade later, it's important to think of the bull much like the heroes of lore: he was put down not for the sedative, but for his potential to inspire revolution in the ranks of his fellow livestock.

Bonus animal

By my count I've used the word cryptozoological only one other time in an article, so I'm due for another one.

Lake Hopatcong is 4 square miles and has depths up to 50 feet. Its dimensions make it ripe for tales of mysterious creatures and cryptozoological fervor.

So of course that's what happened in 2014, when various unconfirmed sightings and relentless word-of-mouth spread the rumor of a 16-foot long snake living in the lake.

The anaconda or boa constrictor (casual cryptozoologists could never agree) was never actually found and DEP officials refuted the claims. But the stories were enough for a short-lived "Loch Ness" hype in New Jersey.

It even warranted a mention on David Letterman's "Late Show" at the time.

Email: torrejon@northjersey.com

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