Alligator Hunting How-Tos:
Each state has laws and guidelines as to weapon, permits,
licensing and so forth. Make sure you check the local laws
where you plan to Alligator Hunt. It is very important to
know that there are vile bacteria growing in every gator's
mouth. If you are just scratched by the teeth of an
alligator, seek medical attention immediately to ward off
infection.
Alligator Scouting Tips:
-
Eye/Nostril Exposure. The inches between the
alligator's eye and nose is a good estimate of the length in
feet of the alligator. For example, if you have about
7 inches from the eye to the nose, you should have about a 7
foot alligator.
-
Look for matted down grass or barren ground where the
alligator has made a path.
-
Look for claw prints or crawl marks on levees and banks.
-
Typically alligators feed at night and early in the
morning.
Alligator Harvesting Techniques:
(Check your state for approved harvesting methods)
Harpoons: Harpoons have been used as an effective
method for attaching a restraining line to harvest an alligator
that is consistent with Commission rules. Harpoons or gigs
consist of a penetrating point such as a straightened fish hook,
detachable dart, fish gig, or spear point attached to a
restraining line (a diagram is included on page 14). A float may
be attached to the restraining line, but it must always be
attended. The harpoon point is typically mounted on a pole,
arrow shaft, or spear.
Snatch Hooks: Snatch hooks also have been used as an
effective method for attaching a restraining line to harvest an
alligator that is consistent with Commission rules. A snatch
hook is a weighted treble hook attached to a restraining line
that is hand-held or used in conjunction with a long, stout
fishing rod and reel and heavy line. The hook is typically cast
over the alligator or over the area where he last submerged. The
hook is then retrieved until it contacts the alligator, at which
point it is set with a strong pull. The line should be kept
tight until the animal fatigues and can be approached; the hook
often falls out if the line is allowed to go slack.
Baited Wooden Pegs: Baited wooden pegs less than two
(2) inches in length have been used as an effective method for
attaching a restraining line to harvest an alligator that is
consistent with Commission rules. A baited wooden peg is
attached to a restraining line that is hand-held or used in
conjunction with a long, stout fishing rod and reel and heavy
line. The baited peg is typically thrown or cast near the
alligator or near the area where it last submerged.
Snares: Wire snares attached to a restraining line
loosely mounted (using a small rubber band or piece of tape) to
the end of a pole are most commonly used to secure the alligator
once it has been harpooned and brought under control near the
boat. Snares must be hand-held or attached to a hand-held device
and cannot be left unattended.
Bang Sticks: Bang sticks have been used as an
effective tool for humanely killing alligators attached to a
restraining line. Bang sticks or power heads are devices
typically used by divers to kill fish. They
discharge a firearm cartridge by contact and are effective for
killing alligators. For a humane kill, the shot
should be centered immediately behind the skull cap and angled
toward the brain. It is recommended that
the bang stick be used in compliance with the manufacturer's
safety recommendations. The bang stick
should be discharged below the waterline when killing an
alligator to reduce the potential for aerial
dispersal of bullet and bone fragments. Keep in mind that the
alligator must be attached to a restraining
line using methods such as those describe above before it is
legal to use a bang stick to kill an alligator.
Because it is difficult to ensure that all of the shot is
removed from the alligator meat during
processing, some alligator meat processors may not accept
alligator carcasses if the alligator was
killed with a bang stick using a shotshell.
Alligator Facts:
An adult alligator has a large body, which
is slightly rounded, and a broad head. Males can grow in excess
of 18 feet, while females grow to about nine feet in length. The
broad and rounded snout consists of an upper jaw, which overlaps
the teeth of the lower jaw (fitting into a depression in the
lower jaw). The tail comprises one-half the overall length of
the body. It is muscular and powerful, used to propel the
alligator quickly through the water. Limbs are thick with webbed
feet and five toes on the front feet, and four toes on the back
feet. They walk in a flat-footed fashion, and on land, can run
quickly for short bursts. Coloration of the adult alligator is
black, which along with the snout configuration distinguishes it
from the brownish crocodile. Juvenile alligators are smaller
replicas of their parents, however, they have yellow cross-bands
on their backs.
Average Weight Range of Adult Alligators
Adult alligators usually range in weight between 400 and 1000
pounds depending on age and the quality of habitat. The largest
alligator on record was over 19 feet - quite a
whopper! Although they seem a bit lazy in the water as
they prowl around, they can actually reach short distance speeds
of up to 30 MPH - That's faster than I can run!
Alligator Reproduction
Breeding season begins in the spring during April or May. The
male alligator bellows to attract females. This bellowing is
accomplished by, sucking air into their lungs and blowing it out
(alligators have no vocal cords). Bellowing acts to attract
females and warn off other males. The sound vibrations can
travel great distances under water. Head-slapping, rapidly
swinging the head up and then down to the water surface, is
another means to attract a mate. The two alligators will use
complex postures to aid in the courtship ritual, which can last
several hours. A month after mating the female lays 20 to 50
eggs in a three foot, by six foot, nest constructed of mud and
rotting vegetation. Like a mulch, the vegetation heats as it
decays, keeping the eggs warm until hatched. The female protects
the nest from intruders throughout the 65-day incubation period.
When hatched, the young emit a high-pitched noise as the mother
quickly digs them out and carries them to water. The young form
a pod and remain close to the female for up to three years.
Alligators reach sexual maturity between eight and twelve years
of age.
Food Usage/Selection
Adult alligators are carnivorous and eat fish, birds, beaver,
otter and other mammals. The young eat mostly insects, small
fish, frogs, tadpoles, and snails. Alligators are nocturnal,
feeding at night, however; they are very opportunistic hunters
and will take prey anytime.
Larger mammals are pulled under water and drowned before being
torn apart. Smaller prey species are devoured whole. An
alligator has approximately 80 teeth, which can regenerate if
lost. Alligators can go through up to 3000 teeth in a lifetime.
Alligator Range
Alligators are mostly located in the southeastern United States:
Florida, Louisiana, Texas, Georgia, Arkansas, Alabama,
Mississippi, Oklahoma, and the Carolinas.
Alligator Habitat
Alligators are typically found in freshwater creeks, swamps,
rivers and canals. Alligators excavate burrows using their
snout, tail, and legs, to provide a refuge from the winter and
dry season. These “alligator holes” are often modified, or
expanded by the alligator over time. The hole stays full of
water except for an air chamber, and provides the alligator, and
other species of animals with a source of water. If the hole
dries up, the alligator will seek out another area to build.
Common Alligator Hunting Methods
A wide variety of weapons are used to hunt alligator.
Bows, handguns, rifles, shotguns, harpoons to name a few.
Many times, hunters use calling to locate mature female
alligators. Young alligators make a high-pitched squeaking
noise that locates the mother. Mimicking this sound will
get the attention of any female with young in the area.
The eyes of a large alligator will glow red and those of a
smaller will glow green when a light is shined on them. This
fact can be used to find alligators in the dark.
Alligator Hunting Challenges/Values
Alligators are valued for their meat as well as for their belly
skin, which creates high-quality leather. They benefit the
environment by keeping rodent and other small animals
populations under control in the wetlands.
Interesting Facts:
The name alligator comes from “el lagarto” meaning, “the
lizard.”
Alligators are part of the crocodilians, which appeared 80
million years ago during the Cretaceous period, near the end of
the Mesozoic era. Crocodilians are from a group called,
Crocodyloformes, who appeared 245 million years ago during the
Triassic period.
Temperatures inside the alligator nest can determine the sex of
the young. Eggs incubated over 96 degrees produce males, from 86
degrees and below, females are produced and temperatures in
between produce both sexes.
|
