Stryker Lake family experiences 'close call' with 4-foot alligator
STORY: LELAND ACKER PHOTO: ROBIN D. BEST
a casual swim at Lake Stryker turns to terror when a floating log turns out to be an alligator. Cherokeean Herald

contributor Robin Best calls for his

daughter to get out of the water, and no harm is done. After taking several pictures of the alligator, Mr. Best contacts the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD). Monique Slaughter, alligator biologist for (TPWD), Port Arthur office, said it is unusual for alligators to approach people.

"Alligators pretty much keep to themselves," she said. "They are nesting right now. The females are aggressive in protecting their nests, but they give warning when you are too close."

TPWD's Web site, www.tpwd.state.tx.us, reports that no one in Texas has ever been killed by an alligator since records have been kept. Some have been injured by alligators, though the Web site said those instances are rare. When confrontations between alligators and humans take place, there are usually several factors that play into that situation.

"Alligators can get acclimated to people feeding them," Ms. Slaughter said. "We passed a law outlawing that a couple of years ago, but people still feed them indirectly."

Indirect feeding, according to the Web site, is usually unintentional. Ms. Slaughter said examples of indirect feeding happens when people clean fish by the lake or stream and leave the by-products on the shore or in the water. Feeding alligators is a Class C misdemeanor punishable by a $500 fine.

Alligators have not learned that people can be food - yet.

"They tend to shy away from people," Ms. Slaughter said, adding that alligators have a natural fear of people. "People need to use common sense and be wise."

The expanding population in Texas is encroaching on the alligators natural habitat. Despite that trend, Ms. Slaughter said no major problems have arisen. However, the department receives approximately 400 nuisance alligator calls per year.

The department defines a nuisance alligator as one that is aggressive toward people, spends time in a property owner's yard.

"A nuisance alligator poses an immediate danger," Ms. Slaughter said. "For example, if it is on the baseball field, or is in a situation where it can not retreat, or if it is in a carport, it is a nuisance gator."

Ms. Slaughter said alligator sightings are common, so residents are urged not to call just because one has been sighted.

"We have a long way to go toward educating the public about alligators," She said, adding that she expects nuisance calls to increase as the rain continues. She predicts that alligators will move around and will appear in unusual places.

"Everything is displaced," she said. "They need dry land as much as they need water."

How to hunt alligators

To counteract the effect the urban sprawl and land usage changes are having on alligator human encounters, Texas allows alligators to be hunted during various seasons, Ms. Slaughter said. Cherokee County's alligator season runs from April 1 - June 30. Limits are one gator per licensed hunter, Ms. Slaughter said.

"Hunting can be done on private land only, with land owner's permission," she said. "Last year, 117 alligators were taken, some were pretty big ones. We want to see smaller ones taken, under six feet. Those are the more likely alligators to become nuisances because they are moving around."

TPWD offers advice for what people should do when they encounter alligators. First, if the alligator is not approaching people or posing a threat, officials ask that residents wait a few days before calling the department. Most alligators will move on.

In the event of a close encounter with an alligator, people should back away slowly.

Residents are urged to keep pets on leashes when walking near areas where alligator encounters are common. Pets are often curious and alligators may see them as an easy food source. Residents are also advised not to swim in waters where alligators are present or to try to remove them from roadways. Such behavior increases the likelihood of an attack.

An alligator's hiss is a warning that a human is too close. Nuisance alligators are alligators that charge people, leave the water banks to spend time near homes or livestock pens, or follow boats without submerging. It is not uncommon for alligators to follow top-water fishing lures.

TPWD officials encourage alligator viewing and photography from a safe distance of 30 feet or more, saying they are an important part of Texas' natural history and an integral component of the wetland ecosystems.