Alligator In Pond By Charlotte Pool

[mherzberg]

My wife and I just witnessed our first alligator "in the wild"! Small one, probably 3' or so, near the shoreline by the shuffleboard courts at the Charlotte pool. Interesting to watch it maneuver.

[DonH57]

I've seen one in lake sumter and one over in a pond by Palmer's Legends a few times.

[Carl in Tampa]

Ponds and lakes in Florida constantly have alligators coming and going. Feeding them is illegal and dangerous. They will eat dogs and may attack children. It is also illegal to catch or harm them without a license. If you are troubled by having one in a pond near you, contact Community Watch. The Villages may have a licensed trapper remove it.

[Barefoot]

Ponds and lakes in Florida constantly have alligators coming and going. Feeding them is illegal and dangerous. They will eat dogs and may attack children. It is also illegal to catch or harm them without a license. If you are troubled by having one in a pond near you, contact Community Watch. The Villages may have a licensed trapper remove it.

And please be careful taking their pictures, gators can move really, really fast!

[Golfingnut]

My wife and I just witnessed our first alligator "in the wild"! Small one, probably 3' or so, near the shoreline by the shuffleboard courts at the Charlotte pool. Interesting to watch it maneuver.

:clap2::duck:duck:

I wish we would be instructed to train our kids and dogs and leave the gathers alone.. That said, I know the villages is on a never ending hunt to remove all gaters from the waterways.

:duck::duck::duck:

[vorage]

Congratulations on your first gator sighting!
Like many of the other writers, we too have spotted alligators in most of the ponds at one time or another; enough to realize that one is likely around even if we don't see it. Most of us are excited to see these amazing creatures and watch them safely from a respectful distance.
That said, here is a link to a brochure from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission that explains how to live around them safely and how the nuisance alligator program really works. Gators under 4 feet generally prey on fish, frogs and other small animals and are not considered a threat to humans. However, wise people will walk their "other small animals" well away from ponds, whether you see an alligator or not.

http://myfwc.com/media/152524/Alligator_Brochure.pdf

[asianthree]

Our first one was 10pm and it was crossing pennacamp dr...it looked a lot bigger in the rear view mirror of our golf cart

[Bogie Shooter]

Ponds and lakes in Florida constantly have alligators coming and going. Feeding them is illegal and dangerous. They will eat dogs and may attack children. It is also illegal to catch or harm them without a license. If you are troubled by having one in a pond near you, contact Community Watch. The Villages may have a licensed trapper remove it.

Being "troubled" is not a good reason to have the gator removed. It is usually shot upon being caught.

[Bogie Shooter]

:clap2::duck:duck:

I wish we would be instructed to train our kids and dogs and leave the gathers alone.. That said, I know the villages is on a never ending hunt to remove all gaters from the waterways.

:duck::duck::duck:

Never ending hunt? Where does this come from?

[ssmith]

So glad Bogie Shooter mentioned this...if the authorities come and if it is too large it is toast!!!

[DonH57]

The sad truth is because of careless humans, the animals end up being destroyed.

[Maschutt]

We just saw one in a pond on the Caroline course in Mallory Hill. Big and a bit scary.

[NotGolfer]

Last year a man whose yard is "on" a pool nearly lost his dog. It made the news nationally as he went in and rescued it...which isn't the thing to do. Gladly they both made it out alive and the gator was destroyed (it bit the man during the rescue).

[Golfingnut]

Never ending hunt? Where does this come from?

I see them in the removal process all the time.

[duffysmom]

Being "troubled" is not a good reason to have the gator removed. It is usually shot upon being caught.

Bogie is so right. Leave them alone and they will leave you alone. We have to coexist with wildlife. Unfortunately people lack common sense and have no respect for nature. I actually saw children hanging over the railing on the boardwalk trying to feed the gators while their clueless parents watched. Gators have an amazing ability to leap high and run short distances. We are totally safe on the boardwalk but not hanging down over the railings. Gators are wild creatures and are not here for our amusement, when you feed a wild animal you are signing it's death sentence. If you see one in a pond admire it's strenght and prehistoric beauty, and keep a wide berth.

[Jaggy]

i miss seeing the ali - gator ( as we called him/her?) in the Palmer pond.. before all the rain and the water was low he was always on the little island.. we waved and said "Hey" and on our way we went..

[buggyone]

Last year a man whose yard is "on" a pool nearly lost his dog. It made the news nationally as he went in and rescued it...which isn't the thing to do. Gladly they both made it out alive and the gator was destroyed (it bit the man during the rescue).

The pond was not on his property. The dog should not have been off the leash.

[patfla06]

A 3 foot one is a baby.
And boy do they move fasttttttttttttttt..................

[Carl in Tampa]

Being "troubled" is not a good reason to have the gator removed. It is usually shot upon being caught.

I disagree. Being "troubled" by the thought that an alligator may eat a family pet or attack a small child is an excellent reason for having it removed.

In all probability an alligator removed by a licensed trapper will be harvested for its hide and edible meat. That's the payment to the trapper.

Alligators are not an endangered species. Alligators abound; especially in Florida and Louisiana. What do you think is the source of the "gator tail bites" that are available on the menu down at R.J. Gators? It's like Ted Nugent says, "If you don't kill 'em, you can't grill 'em."

In addition to the nuisance alligator program, Florida has an alligator harvest program.

If you want to see alligators go to one of the tourist attractions that have them on display. Keep them out of The Villages, to the extent possible; you will never keep them all out.

[DonH57]

To my understanding an alligator is removed and destroyed if they display a loss of fear from humans usually due to illegal feeding and taunting by humans. Pretty much common sense if you know an alligator is in a body of water, admire from a distant and stay away. The pond or lake is the gators habitat, not your dog's or children.

[mherzberg]

I just enjoy watching nature and try to show respect for each animal's habitat. It amazes me how much wildlife shares TV!

[DonH57]

There is quite a bit of wildlife here in TV with all the birds, turtles, gators, and other creatures.

[Carl in Tampa]

To my understanding an alligator is removed and destroyed if they display a loss of fear from humans usually due to illegal feeding and taunting by humans. Pretty much common sense if you know an alligator is in a body of water, admire from a distant and stay away. The pond or lake is the gators habitat, not your dog's or children.

Actually, many pre-teen kids fish in the ponds while here visiting their grandparents,

And you will find many people walking their dogs around the ponds at dusk.

[DonH57]

Oh. Yeah. Not arguring that point. Believe me. I'm only well aware personal responsibility and common sense have went bye bye a long time ago with our society. No surprise at all. See it more and more.

[Russ_Boston]

I don't believe there is any active 'hunt' for gators in TV. If so then they do a bad job. I see gators at least once a week while playing golf. Saw a small one just last night at Bonita exec. I don't believe a gator has ever harmed a human in TV. Let them be. We live in FLORIDA after all.

[DonH57]

I believe you are right Russ I've never heard of any instances here in TV. It just bothers me when people believe animals should be destroyed because they are an inconvienence by their basic presence.