Alligator safety is important when traveling to the southeastern United States, because the chances of an alligator encounter are incredibly high. So take a minute to educate yourself on these necessary precautions so you can have a fun, exciting, and SAFE experience!
Nowadays, alligators aren’t only surviving; they’re thriving. Once considered endangered by the IUCN, they have been delisted and are now classified as “least concern” due to strong conservation efforts by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and state wildlife agencies in the 1970s and 80s. In fact, there is now an estimated 5 million alligators in the southeastern United States, with about 1.3 million in Florida alone.
And with this robust population, the chances of encountering an alligator in the wild are very good. You can pretty much go to any lake, stream, marsh, or swamp in the southeastern U.S. and have several opportunities to see an alligator.
This brings us to the point of this article. Though alligators provide an excellent opportunity to experience wildlife in its natural habitat, it’s very important to take some safety precautions because let’s face it; the difference between you staying safe or becoming their next meal is just one wrong move.
Alligator Safety Tips
These safety tips are summarized directly from the Everglades National Park and Florida Fish & Wildlife recommendations:
🐊Keep a distance of at least 15-20 feet.
Alligators are deceptively quick and can chase you down before you even have time to react. On dry land, alligators can run up to 11 mph which doesn’t seem lightning quick, but it’s faster than you think, especially if you fall on your face during your getaway…There is a theory that running in a zig-zag pattern can confuse an alligator and make it stop chasing, but there’s no real proof to back this up. So stay back!
🐊Beware of the Alligator Hiss
Hissing means you’re too close, so back away further. Even if you’re at the recommended distance, an ornery alligator may still decide that this is too close. It may let out a warning hiss to tell you to back off, so you better listen. This is especially true if a female alligator is guarding her babies, as she acts as their protector for at least the first year of their lives.
In my personal experience, I saw a few baby gators in a canal once right by the bank. As I walked up to get a closer look, mama swam right over in my direction to tell me to back off. I listened!
🐊Alligators Are Night Hunters
Avoid going near water at night when alligators are most active. Alligators are known to be nocturnal hunters and their activity level increases dramatically from dusk until dawn. This doesn’t mean you’re safe during the day, but you should be especially alert if you’re hanging around water at night.
🐊Don’t Let Children Play Near Water Unsupervised
In the eyes of an alligator, small children may look like an easy meal. Unfortunately, there have been several instances of children being attacked and killed by alligators, including a two-year old who was killed by an alligator at Seven Seas Lagoon right in Disney World.
🐊Keep your pets leashed at all times around water
Just like children, pets are also easy prey for alligators. There was recently a viral video of a man heroically wrestling a small dog out of the jaws of an alligator down in Florida. The dog survived, and the man didn’t even lose his cigar in the scuffle.
🐊Never feed alligators
Never feed alligators because they will start to associate humans with food and become more aggressive. This is true for most wild animals in general, but it’s especially true for large carnivores. In fact, biologists have found that many alligators involved in attacks on humans have become accustomed to humans through feeding. For this reason, feeding wild alligators in Florida is considered a crime and is punishable with a fine.
Conclusion
As long as you follow the aforementioned safety tips, you should be just fine during your southeastern wilderness adventure. So have fun with your alligator experience, and give them the respect that they deserve!
Stay Safe & Stay Alive
Cody
The Wild Bites Back
Related Articles
How to Handle a Mountain Lion Encounter
8 Scary Monsters Lurking in the Amazon River
Pingback: How to Survive a Grizzly Bear Attack - The Wild Bites Back
Pingback: How to Handle A Black Bear Attack - The Wild Bites Back