Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations The return of Sneaky Pete

Well, he's back and he brought a friend. 'Ole Sneaky Pete (alligator) showed up today, out of the blue. Swam right up to the pier. Then another gator swan up and joined him. Two gators better than one? I think not. He looks nice and healthy and at least 6 feet long, maybe a little longer.

I been needin a new pair of boot and a vest anyway.

Gator

how about PB caps w/ the logo stitched in real gator's gators skin

you know, though, we dont have critters like that around here, and if'n we did, i'd probably enjoy them as much as the rattlers we do have. great deterrent for tresspassers.

do they eat fish, or just keep folks from swimming?

D.I.E.D.

There is some conversation about gators eating fish and such - but I have no hard evidence either way. My local TPW game biologist provided a study that examined gator's and found a variety of stuff - frogs, snakes, turtles, small rodents and not much in the way of fish...stories about gators ruining the catachability of fish, but I have caught fish with the gator watching me.

I think (Gators opinion) they are mostly opportunistic and curious. If something is going on at the lake, like splashing water or noise, they check it out. If an easy meal is there, they take it.

I think the biggest concern is when they lose their fear of humans and/or become accustomed to being fed by humans, this is problematic.

Gator

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Alligator:
I think (Gators opinion) they are mostly opportunistic and curious. If something is going on at the lake, like splashing water or noise, they check it out. If an easy meal is there, they take it.
QUOTE]

Alligator: Your comment reminded me of a video-clip. It is long, but quite amazing that such wildlife "interaction" was caught on video.
CLICK> Life on the Savanah

Warning: This video represents raw footage of the "food-chain concept" (cast members include water buffalo, lions and crocs)

Kelly - Thanks, that is an incredible sequence and is a good example how gator/crocs associate noise and splashing with an eating opportunity. I see that behavior in my gotrs too...they will come to where the actions is.

You wouldnt want to walk up to that pond and start splashing your toes in to check the water temp, would you? YIKIES!

Gator, I have enuff trouble with turtles I sure wouldn't want to have an alligator too.

Whoa Kelly - that was an intense video. Being a wildlife biologist and a huge fan of the large cat, I had a hard time watching it. I'm glad the cats didn't wind up in the water with the crock.

Thanks Kelly. Those Buffs are tough and mean. Often noted as the most dangerous land animal in Africa. Those cats were lucky to survive. How strong must those male Buffs be to throw a 300-400 lb. lion 6 ft in the air.

It would be hard to enjoy your pond with a water buffalo herd, a pride of lions and gators all trying to eat each other and you (Ok, the buffalo wouldn’t eat you)!

A lot less fishing and a lot more running and a lot more
.

Was it me, or did you get the sense that the Buffalo were severly peeved at the lions? Getting the baby bull back wasnt enough - they wanted payback didnt they?

My FIL always said "Paybacks are Hell!"

I snagged a couple of shot of Sneaky Pete this weekend.




Gator

I don't know. I guess that's just what you southern gulf coast ponders have to deal with.

I don't think I could get down that way. I mean being in the boat and leaning out to unsnag your line from a semi-submerged bush or tree would take on a whole new meaning in the sack category.

I'm glad I live in West Virginia. We don't have Sneaky Pete. We just have Ol' Sneaky Snake. He just drinks all our root beer.

Although my pond is still new, I'm already getting a lot of turtles, bullfrogs, and water snakes. If trends continue, I may get myself a little gator. I guess it would beat sniping at the pests with an air rifle.

The Demise of Sneaky Pete:

Well, an update on the gator situation:

I’ve spoken with a local TPW biologist who is going to set a trap, catch, and remove the gators. They will be re-located to a Wildlife Management Area that is in need of predators. I hope ‘ole Sneaky Pete will make a good addition to the WMA population.

My observations (thus far):

Gators, over time, become accustomed to and loose their fear of humans. I feel this is part of their natural learning ability or instinct. The more time we spent at the lake, the less threatened they felt by our presence and the closer they would get to us. In the end the gators would come directly under the pier while we were fishing or just a few feet away while we were on the bank. It seems that they “watch” and learn. As they inch closer with no harm, they inch a little closer and so on. Over time, the distance becomes dangerous.

They have a natural bite reflex. I observed this several times, the gators snap at anything within striking distance. They have the mentality of bite first, taste it – and eat it if it tastes like food. If it doesn’t taste like food, then drop it. For example: red-and-white fishing bobbers. It took them a while to figure out that my bobbers were not food. Anything that move close, especially to the sides, is likely to get a snap from the gator. Wow! They are fast!

They are curious. My lake became “their lake”. If any activity was happening on the lake, it wouldn’t take long for the gators to show up. My theory is that splashing water readily attracts the gators attention, so they will always come over and “check it out”.

They can become aggressive even if you DO NOT intentionally feed the gator. They gradually lost their fear of us and began watching us while we were fishing. First, they began grabbing at fish when we released them back into the water. Next they began trying to grab the fish before we landed them. Finally, one of the larger gators chased a hooked bass as I was fishing on the shoreline. It was in hot pursuit of the fish…in a very aggressive move. He wanted that fish and for a moment I wasn’t sure he was going to back off. He came within 3 feet of me – clearly going after the fish, but had it been a child or someone else, they could have unwittingly dragged the fish (and gator in hot pursuit) directly to them and put themselves in danger. He finally backed off after much yelling and waving of arms. They now clearly associate me with fish and are becoming more and more aggressive.


My 2 cents on gators in your lake or pond:

- First off, I like the gators. They are part of the natural system and a lot of fun to watch. You are lucky to have the opportunity to see them in the wild. However, safety must come first and as they become a problem, they must be relocated or removed.

- Size matters. A 3’ to 4’ gator is not a big threat and will likely stay away from human (unless fed). However, once they reach about 5 feet long, they start to gain girth and mass too. Anything over 5’ long should be “relocated”.

- Never feed them. Remember that gators move around too. If you are feeding a pet gator, think about this: What happens to the next guy when your gator decides to move on?

- Be aware if gators are in your area. They are becoming more populated and they are reclaiming their range in Texas. State laws protected gators and their numbers have grown. I grew up in East Texas never recall seeing an alligator. Now-a-days, they are all over the place and it is no surprise to find one. The state recently added a nuisance gator season as a result from the expanding population. I hear that gator tags may be standard on hunting Texas licenses sometime in the future.

- Just because you don’t see them doesn’t mean they are not there + where there is one gator, there is likely more. I have spotted anywhere from none to 3 (or more) gators in my lake on any given day. I predict that this will be an ongoing problem. They tend to come and go, often going weeks without seeing a gator, then all of the sudden they are back again.

I hope you find this information helpful.

Gator

I agree !!

excellent post gator.

i'd miss him in some ways, and definitely not in others......good luck to sneaky pete!!

Thanks, Gator. Nice summary.

...re-read Gator's thorough post, but substitute the word gator with lousy neighbors

It is permissible to relocate small-g gators, but large-G Gator must remain here.

Thanks guys, and yes the name of our lake is now officially "Gator Lake". How could it be anything else?

that reads really funny b'ski......did you perhaps have a recent encounter inspiring yer post? (not meaning to hijack this fine thread mind you....apologies in advance gator).

Very very good post.

I had never thought of this. Awesome point and really good post, Gator.