He hasn?t eaten for several months, so he could be forgiven for feeling a little bit snappy.

But Oscar, Bermuda Zoo?s American alligator, just laps up the afternoon sun and keeps his ferocious 400 pound, 12 foot-long frame in a statuesque pose that has become very familiar to visitors over the years. At first glance he could be dead, the only sign of life being the ever so slight flexing of his nostrils in order to breathe.

Animal lovers, however, need not worry about rough, tough Oscar feeling croc due to lack of food.

He might have had nothing to sink his teeth into since November, and his next meal ? when he tucks into a whole chicken complete with feathers and bones ? is not due to be served up until next month. But that long face of his is nothing to do with appetite.

?Oscar?s metabolism slows down in winter. He doesn?t eat then,? explains Zoey Roberts, head zookeeper at the Flatt?s attraction. ?It can be dangerous if he did, because his body would not be able to digest the food properly and it could end up just rotting in his stomach. He?ll start eating again in April when it starts to warm up.?

She said that Bermuda?s favourite snapper, now in his 21st year on the Island, hungrily tucks into two large chickens each week during summer months when he transforms into a ravenous reptile. ?Sometimes he might have a duck or a pigeon,? added Zoey, outlining the crocodile cuisine on offer at Bermuda?s Zoo. ?But we try and stick to chicken. He enjoys them. They never seem to last very long.?

Only eating for half the year might make Oscar, reportedly named after Sesame Street character Oscar the Grouch, a relatively cheap chap to feed. He won?t not win any medals when it comes to table manners, though.

Alligators can?t chew, says Zoey, so they wolf their food down in one. They either tear off large pieces and swallow them, or inelegantly swallow the prey whole if it?s small enough.

That means the gator has to juggle the food around its mouth until it?s in the right position ? then throw back its head so the food slides down its throat.

And even though Oscar has been in captivity for more than two decades, and has his food tossed into his home at regular intervals, his predatory instincts remain ingrained.

Zoey warns visitors not to be fooled by Oscar?s apparently lethargic demeanour. ?He might look fairly placid but don?t be taken in by his quiet nature. He knows what?s going on.?

Cleaning his home sounds like quite a stressful process, with two keepers sent in to sweep up as quickly as possible while another worker stands guard to make sure Oscar remains on the other side of the pen. ?If he comes in the water, we get out,? explains Zoey calmly.

Despite their sluggish looks, alligators are frighteningly fast reptiles when it comes to hunting down prey. If such a bizarre race ever took place, the fact that they can out-sprint a race horse over the first 50 metres would be conclusively proved.

That?s just one of the reasons why there?s a large fence separating Oscar from the public, although Zoey says that does not stop some mindless guests hurling objects at him in futile attempts to entice a reaction.

Soda cans and sunglasses have been found in his pond by keepers and although there have been no recent scares, Oscar did once eat a plastic dolphin that someone threw at him.

That had to be pulled out of his stomach by a vet and the treatment kept the alligator out of action for at least a month.

Zoey admitted that some visitors can get a little squeamish when Oscar is officially fed by keepers.

?Some people get grossed-out because the feathers are still on the chickens. There?s blood and guts and they don?t like the noise when Oscar crushes the bones.

?It?s quite an eerie sound, but we do remind people that they eat chickens as well.?

Staff ensure he only eats in water in an attempt to limit the chances of him attacking staff on dry land during cleaning time.

Oscar has also been trained to hit the water just before meal times ? when staff ring a bell to attract his attention.

?He responds to the bell and is straight into the water,? says the head keeper, who revealed that a broom is used to keep Oscar at bay during tricky periods ? he hates the bristles on his nose.

?It took him about a month to get the hang of it, and he even remembered the bell after the winter break.?

Oscar is soon due to move into a bigger home with an extended pond and some more tropical plants. Zoey re-assured anybody worried that he did not have enough space to move around at the zoo.

?A lot of people think that because he?s a big animal he lives in too small an area,? said the keeper. ?But in the wild they are a lay-in-wait predator.

?The only time they would travel would be when they were looking for a mate or when their food sources run out. They do not move, that?s their whole strategy for hunting. They lie still and snatch out at their prey.?

Nobody knows Oscar?s exact age, although staff are confident he has many more years of lounging in the sun to look forward to.

BAMZ acquired him from a zoo in Indianapolis. He was taken to that zoo after being spotted leaving the back yard of a house ? keepers guess he is about 26 years old.

?He?s one of our favourites at the zoo and one of our most popular animals with visitors,? added Zoey. ?He?s got a lovely personality and although alligators do not have a very big brain, they know what?s going on.

?As long as they can eat and have their little spot they are happy. It?s when people get them to move when there is trouble.?

It?s safe to say Oscar won?t be doing too much moving in years to come.

And with gators in captivity living up to the ripe old age of 80, it could be a while before Bermuda says ?see you later? to Oscar the alligator.