Tag: gator

Footage shows large Florida gator trying ‘to climb up a house’

A home security camera has captured nighttime footage showing an alligator attempting to climb the outside wall of a Florida residence.

A security camera on Monday captured nighttime footage showing a large alligator attempting to climb the outside wall of a Florida residence.

Matt Devitt, chief meteorologist at WINK News, stated via X that the attempted break-in by the ‘huge Florida gator’ occurred in Babcock Ranch.

“That’s a new one!” Devitt observed.

 

The footage was credited to a WINK viewer named Kayla.

Devitt receives plenty of gator footage from viewers.

A haunting image he showcased last February showed a massive alligator sprawled on a golf course, gazing toward the photographer in what Devitt described as a “Jurassic’ moment.

In March Devitt shared footage of a large alligator tearing through a metal fence to with astonishing ease, although it was later revealed that the fencing was aluminum.

“Only in Florida,” Devitt wrote.

It’s not surprising that alligators occasionally generate headlines in Florida.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) states on its website that about 1.3 million alligators reside in the state, and that they inhabit all 67 counties.

–Generic alligator image is courtesy if the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Watch: Frightened angler chased from pond by ‘hungry’ alligator

A Florida news station has shared footage showing an alligator emerging from a pond and chasing an angler who had briefly turned his back on the reptile.

A Florida news station has shared footage showing an alligator chasing a frightened angler who had briefly turned his back on the reptile.

“Never turn your back on a hungry gator!” Matt Devitt of WINK Weather advised on Facebook.

RELATED: Florida gator tears through metal fence with alarming ease; video

The video clip is short and it was not clear how far the angler ran or what inspired the gator to chase him.

“Clear evidence the gator has been fed by humans,” one person suggested in the comments. “A truly wild gator would shy away from humans.”

Because the clip cuts off without a proper ending, another person remarked: “We need a Part 2.”

MORE: Can you spot the hidden animal in these 14 photos?

Watch: Alligator shows python who rules the Everglades

A Florida resident has captured footage showing an alligator devouring a large python after what appears to have been a lopsided battle.

A Florida resident has captured footage showing an alligator attempting to devour a large python after what appears to have been a lopsided battle.

The graphic footage was shared recently by Katina Boychew under the heading: Gator vs Python.

It was also a battle between a native species (American alligator) and a highly invasive species (Burmese python).

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Katina Boychew (@katina86)

So it must have pleased Floridians to see the gator dispatching the python, at times thrashing its rival, so thoroughly.

As Sage Marshall described this week in Field & Stream: “… The gator then proceeds to gulp down part of the giant snake in a way that reminds me of Joey Chestnut eating hot dogs on the 4th of July.”

The one-sided result should not come as a surprise, given the weight advantage enjoyed by gators.

According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), the heaviest alligator recorded in the state weighed 1,043 pounds.

The state-record python weighed 215 pounds.

MORE: Can you spot the hidden animal in these 14 photos?

 

Watch: Giant alligator disrupts play at Florida golf course

A Florida news station has shared video footage showing a massive alligator disrupting practice on a golf course and hissing at players riding in a cart.

A Florida news station has shared video footage showing a massive alligator disrupting practice on a golf course and hissing at players riding in a cart.

“Huge Florida Gator! We do golf a little different,” Matt Devitt, chief meteorologist at WINK News, stated Sunday via Twitter. “Check out this big guy playing through at a Florida course!”

The footage, credited to Dalton Mehrl, shows the alligator trampling a bin of practice balls. The gator then hisses from a cart path as golfers in a cart approach too closely.

“He’s angry,” one of the golfers observes, repeatedly, as the group backs away.

RELATED: Watch as Florida gator tears through metal fence with alarming ease

The footage also shows the gator slow-stepping across the practice area before seemingly pausing to nap.

The size of the reptile is unclear but for those who might wonder: The Florida length record for alligators is 14 feet, 3-1/2 inches. The weight record (involving a different gator) is 1,043 pounds.

Deputy responds to alligator call, reaction goes viral

A Florida sheriff’s deputy has gained notoriety because of his comical reaction during a close alligator encounter at a neighborhood pool.

A Florida sheriff’s deputy has gained notoriety because of his comical reaction during a close alligator encounter at a neighborhood pool.

“When working as a Deputy Sheriff for the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office there is never a dull moment!” the agency exclaimed Tuesday on Facebook. “Just ask Deputy Robert Santiago who earlier today responded to a call where an 8-foot alligator decided to try out the neighbor’s swimming pool!”

Santiago is standing next to Scott Swartley, a trapper contracted by the Sheriff’s Office to handle the tricky aspects of removing the angry reptile.

RELATED: Florida gator tears through metal fence with alarming ease; video

“I would love to know exactly what Deputy Santiago was thinking but I’m pretty sure it was…”Oh hell no I didn’t sign up for this!” the Sheriff’s Office continued.

More than 500 people responded to a request for captions. A sampling:

–“That’s what they call a rough day at work! We don’t appreciate our law enforcement officers enough. They never know what they’re going to face.”

–“They never showed me this in the academy.”

–“Bad gator, bad gator……whatcha gonna do? Brevard County Sheriffs are coming for you!”

–“I’m going to need to go home and change my uniform!”

–“If I stand perfectly still, he will think I’m a tree and leave me alone.”

–“He looks like he saw a box of Krispy Creme doughnuts on the guy’s patio table.”

Florida is home to 1.3 million alligators, which can be found in all 67 counties. Like many critters, they increase activity during spring.

According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the longest alligator recorded in Florida was a male from Lake Washington in Brevard County, measuring 14 feet, 3-1/2 inches.

The heaviest was a 1,043-pound male captured at Orange Lake in Alachua County.

Giant gator visits posh Florida town in another ‘Jurassic’ moment

Residents in an upscale Florida community paused activities Thursday to marvel at the sight of a giant alligator crossing the road.

Residents in an upscale Florida community paused activities Thursday to marvel at the sight of a giant alligator crossing the road.

“Check out this big boy crossing the street in the Forest Glen Community in Naples,” Matt Devitt of WINK Weather stated Saturday on Facebook.

On Instagram, Devitt titled the same footage,“Welcome to Jurassic Park!”

In the footage, captured by a WINK viewer named Catalina, the alligator ignores its admirers as it plods toward one of the neighborhood lawns on trash day.

It was the third time in a month that Devitt shared a clip showing an alligator grabbing the spotlight merely by appearing in public.

One showed a large gator plowing through a metal fence, almost effortlessly, to reach the other side.

ALSO: ‘Massive’ lion forces standoff with safari vehicle; video 

The other showed perhaps a larger gator sprawled on a golf course, gazing menacingly toward a photographer. Deviit also proclaimed that to be a “Jurassic” moment.

But alligators appearing in public places at this time of year should not come as a surprise. Florida is home to 1.3 million alligators and, like many critters, they increase activity as spring approaches.

But it’s always astonishing when the larger of these prehistoric-looking reptiles reveal themselves beyond marshes and swamps.

The longest alligator recorded in Florida was a male from Lake Washington in Brevard County, measuring 14 feet, 3-1/2 inches. The heaviest was a 1,043-pound male captured at Orange Lake in Alachua County.

–Image courtesy of WINK News

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Massive gator spotted on Florida golf course, a ‘Jurassic’ moment

An image showing a giant alligator sprawled on a Florida golf course, gazing ominously toward the photographer, is generating a buzz on social media.

An image showing a giant alligator sprawled on a Florida golf course, gazing ominously toward the photographer, is generating a buzz on social media.

According to WINK Chief Meteorologist Matt Devitt, the image was captured by Rich Louty at a Sebring golf course.

“Welcome to Florida, home to Jurassic Park,” Devitt wrote on Facebook.

The size of the alligator is unclear but for those who might wonder: The longest alligator recorded in Florida measured 14 feet, 3-1/2 inches; the weight record (involving a different gator) is 1,043 pounds.

Adult alligators prey largely on fish, snakes, small mammals, turtles, and birds, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Golfers, thankfully, aren’t on their menu.

ALSO: Texas angler lands eighth largest bass in state history; video

Devitt’s post generated 2,000 comments from residents and outsiders who were impressed by the colossal size of the reptile in the image.

“I have lived in Florida all my life. That is the biggest one I have seen,” one person wrote.

A non-resident chimed in: “I love sunny Florida, but these guys keep me from living there.”

Another top comment: “We have lived in Florida since ’89. The biggest I have ever seen was laying across a canal near a boat ramp in Debary about 20 years ago. He was a bit bigger than this one. We just turned the boat around and went the other way.”

To be sure, a gator of this size lends new meaning to the term “water hazard,” or in this case a fairway hazard to be avoided at all costs.

Reads another comment: “Well that will certainly SLOW DOWN your game.”

Deputies wrestle 11-foot alligator from Florida swimming pool

An 11-foot alligator tore through the screen of a Florida home early Tuesday to access a swimming pool, prompting a call to authorities.

An 11-foot alligator tore through the screen of a Florida home early Tuesday to access a swimming pool, prompting a call to authorities.

The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office shared photos via Facebook showing the 550-pound gator in the pool and being dealt with (carefully) by deputies after the reptile was removed from the water at the Deep Creek residence.

“Water Safety Month, Tip #37: Always check your pool before diving in!” The Sheriff’s Office advised.

The post continued: “A Deep Creek family was awakened by some loud noises on their lanai and came out to find this guy taking a dip in their pool. Coming in at 10’11” and weighing over 550 lbs., he tore through the screen to get to the nice, cool water.”

It was not immediately clear if the gator was relocated or euthanized.

Four Texans cited for poaching alligator in Louisiana

Four men from Texas have been cited for their suspected roles in an alligator-poaching incident Sunday in Louisiana’s Assumption Parish.

Four men from Texas have been cited for their suspected roles in an alligator-poaching incident Sunday in Louisiana’s Assumption Parish.

The Louisiana Department of Fisheries and Wildlife cited the men after responding to a complaint about an alligator carcass left at a truck stop.

Agents located the alligator and discovered a bullet hole in its head. Video footage from the truck stop implicated the four men.

ALSO ON FTW OUTDOORS: Rarely seen wolverines anything but shy in trail-cam video footage

The men, cited for killing an alligator out of season, were identified as Boyd Bumbera, 23, from Brookshire; Baron Vargas, 27, and Manuel Gomez, 33, from Houston, and Jesus Fajardo, 35, from Baytown.

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries stated in a news release that alligator hunting in the region does not open until the last Saturday in August.

Killing an alligator during a closed season carries fines of between $400 and $950, and up to 120 days in jail. The men might also be forced to pay civil restitution totaling $375 for the “replacement value” of the alligator.

–Alligator image courtesy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Golfers make way for massive gator in ‘Jurassic Park’ moment

A number of Florida golfers ceased play briefly over the weekend to allow a giant alligator to cross the fairway.

A number of Florida golfers ceased play briefly over the weekend to allow a giant alligator to cross the fairway.

The accompanying footage, shared to Facebook on Monday by WINK, shows the gator walking slowly across a fairway as one golfer observes that the reptile is handicapped.

“He’s missing a foot,” he says.

Matt Devitt of WINK Weather wrote on Facebook: “Check out this big boy walking across a Bonita Bay golf course this past weekend from a WINK viewer. Welcome to Jurassic Park!”

ALSO ON FTW OUTDOORS: Florida captain caught with more than 2,000 pompano over the limit

Viewers may note that the golfers in the background, while affording the gator a wide berth, appear more interested in plotting their next shots.

Among the 300-plus comments was this from a viewer named Brandi: “I love how everyone is just going about their golf game, like there’s not a baby dinosaur walking across the course!”

A handful of comments echoed the sentiment expressed by a viewer named June: “I would give up golf for sure.”