A spokeswoman for the Chicago Animal Care and Control has revealed that since it wasn’t immediately clear when the alligator last ate, the capture effort might turn into a waiting game that could drag on for weeks or even months.

An elusive alligator that recently took residence in the Humboldt Park lagoon in Chicago stubbornly continues to elude all attempts by local authorities to capture it, ABC News reports.

According to the media outlet, the alligator was first spotted on 9 July and has so far managed to avoid all the traps set for it, with the creature’s tenacity and resilience attracting a considerable fan base.

"I think they named him, what, 'Chance the Snapper’. So coming out here to see Chance", an onlooker named Xavier Perez said.

As Jenny Schlueter, a spokeswoman for Chicago Animal Care and Control, explained, city officials strive to humanely capture the creature which likely was somebody’s pet that got dropped in the lagoon.

She noted that the traps – which are laden with bait like chicken drumsticks, fish and rats – are being monitored around the clock, but it remains unclear when the animal might attempt to approach them.

"We don't know when the alligator ate last, and if he's not hungry or he's too nervous to eat then it's just a waiting game. It could be weeks or months until he eats again", Schlueter remarked.

The alligator’s exploits and the authorities’ efforts to catch it have also attracted the interest of the social media crowd, with a number of netizens joking about how similar the creature’s nickname sounds to that of Chance the Rapper.

As residents of Humboldt Park, @archipelican and I were able to attend this exclusive meet and greet with Chance the Snapper and his opening acts 😎🐊 #HumboldtGator pic.twitter.com/VzBZeSRJUg — pop punk possum (@gwayby) 12 июля 2019 г.