John Jefferson
Wildlife officials and deputies in Florida sprang into action recently when an eight-foot alligator was found lurking in the front yard of a home along the state’s Gulf Coast.
The Lee County Sheriff’s Office assisted the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) in wrangling the reptile last weekend from a home in Bonita Springs.
“On three, really shove. One, two three, shove!” one official could be heard saying in body camera footage shared on the Lee County’s Sheriff’s Office Facebook page, as at least three officials carried the gator to a truck, with one person holding its duct-taped mouth.
The officials then swung the alligator into the back of a truck with a lid and shut the door.
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“OH SNAP!” the sheriff’s office wrote on Facebook on Wednesday. “Over the weekend, this 8-foot swamp puppy showed up on a Bonita Springs resident’s doorstep! LCSO deputies gave a helping hand to our friends at MyFWC Florida Fish and Wildlife.”
The gator was “safely relocated,” the sheriff’s office said, adding, “See ya later, Alligator!”
Alligators live in every county in Florida, according to Florida Fish & Wildlife.
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“In recent years, Florida has experienced tremendous human population growth,” the organization says on its website. “Many residents seek waterfront homes, and increasingly participate in water-related activities. This can result in more frequent alligator-human interactions, and a greater potential for conflict.”
FWC added, “Although many Floridians have learned to coexist with alligators, the potential for conflict always exists. Serious injuries caused by alligators are rare in Florida, but if you are concerned about an alligator, call FWC’s toll-free Nuisance Alligator Hotline at 866-392-4286. The FWC will dispatch one of its contracted nuisance alligator trappers to resolve the situation.”
The organization advised people to keep their distance from alligators and never feed them, and to only swim in designated areas.
A year ago, the remains of a woman who had been experiencing homelessness were found inside an alligator’s mouth near a waterway in Pinellas County not far from the campsite where she lived.
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