HERE ARE SOME of the things you may have witnessed, if you’ve been following the Northern Ireland election campaign online.

• Former republican prisoners dancing to the Crocodile Rock, while dressed as crocodiles
• People in crocodile outfits canvassing for Sinn Féin
• People in crocodile outfits voting
• Sinn Féin politicians referring to each other as crocodile hunters
• Countless other crocodiles references: emojis, cartoons – jokes etc.

It’s, frankly, hard to get a grasp on the scale of the phenomenon (sorry).

WHY are Sinn Féin and Sinn Féin supporters so keen on the crocodile references, you may ask…

It’s not because they’re green.

The roots of the meme can be traced back to comments by DUP leader Arlene Foster last month, on the subject of supports for the Irish language.

Her party would never agree to an Irish language act, the former First Minister said, telling supporters “If you feed a crocodile it will keep coming back for more”.

• Related: More on the SF-DUP divide over the Irish language >

Foster, in retrospect, left herself wide open to a standard reptile-based rejoinder: asked about her comments, Gerry Adams responded with a snappy “See you later, alligator”.

The Sinn Féin crocodile has grown legs in the weeks since Foster’s initial remark – sparking all manner of references on social and in traditional media.

Sinn Féin’s Gerry Kelly took part in a dancing contest at a Sinn Féin fundraiser at the weekend, for instance, sparking shrill headlines in the Daily Express.

And Gerry Adams has been posting videos from bridges over various rivers as he campaigns with local candidates, joking about the ‘crocodiles’ in the water below (and at one point “DUP ducks”).

Express Express

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Let’s hope no actual crocodiles escape from Belfast Zoo before polls close – it might get confusing out there.

Actually… Let’s hope no actual crocodiles ever escape from ANY of our zoos.

Related: Want to know more about the election? 

Related: Want to know more about crocodiles?

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