Aldebaran
6/30/2011, 03:52 PM
Emphasis on the had... Apparently the wardens shot one in eastern Oklahoma. It's terrible that people aren't more responsible with this sort of thing.
http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=11&articleid=20110629_11_0_WTSAli381482
Game warden says he shot alligator in far-eastern Oklahoma
By SUSAN HYLTON World Staff Writer
Published: 6/29/2011 8:01 PM
Last Modified: 6/29/2011 8:01 PM
WATTS — An alligator that was sighted near the Illinois River in March was shot to death by a state game warden Sunday after wildlife officials decided that the animal was a public nuisance and public safety concern.
“There was a lot of uncertainty and concern with the alligator being in this area,” state game warden Jared Cramer said. “I’ve had many concerned citizens call who were worried about the situation and people even saying they wouldn’t let their kids go to the swimming hole because of the alligator.”
Cramer said he shot it Sunday at an oxbow — a former river channel that still holds water — off the Illinois River near Watts, which is in Adair County.
The 5-foot-3-inch alligator’s body was found by area residents on Monday, he said.
Cramer said the area is about 200 yards from a popular swimming hole and fishing area on Ballard Creek, which feeds into the Illinois River.
Cramer said wildlife officials considered but ruled out the option of capturing the animal and taking it to a wildlife refuge. “The problem was where it was at,” he said.
Cramer said there is a natural habitat for alligators in McCurtain County, the most southeastern county in the state.
Reginald Murray, owner of Oklahoma Wildlife Control and an expert in wildlife removal, said he gets calls about alligators and imported caiman, which are native to South America, regularly in the Tulsa area, including in the Arkansas and Verdigris rivers.
Murray said he notifies the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation when he removes an alligator and then releases it in southeastern Oklahoma.
“If it has attacked somebody, it’ll be put down,” he said.
There is no open season for alligator hunting in Oklahoma, so shooting one would be illegal for the general public.
“We want to make it clear that the public is not allowed to take matters into its own hands,” Cramer said. “We want the public to notify the Wildlife Department when these types of things happen so we can take proper measures to take care of it. We have protocol for that situation.”
Murray said he believes that the Oklahoma alligator population is due to migration via the Sabine River, which borders Louisiana and Texas, as well as human owners who release them when they become too large for them to handle.
Cramer said the alligator he killed Sunday “most likely … had been in captivity for the majority of its life and released by someone.”
Read more from this Tulsa World article at http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=11&articleid=20110629_11_0_WTSAli381482
http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=11&articleid=20110629_11_0_WTSAli381482
Game warden says he shot alligator in far-eastern Oklahoma
By SUSAN HYLTON World Staff Writer
Published: 6/29/2011 8:01 PM
Last Modified: 6/29/2011 8:01 PM
WATTS — An alligator that was sighted near the Illinois River in March was shot to death by a state game warden Sunday after wildlife officials decided that the animal was a public nuisance and public safety concern.
“There was a lot of uncertainty and concern with the alligator being in this area,” state game warden Jared Cramer said. “I’ve had many concerned citizens call who were worried about the situation and people even saying they wouldn’t let their kids go to the swimming hole because of the alligator.”
Cramer said he shot it Sunday at an oxbow — a former river channel that still holds water — off the Illinois River near Watts, which is in Adair County.
The 5-foot-3-inch alligator’s body was found by area residents on Monday, he said.
Cramer said the area is about 200 yards from a popular swimming hole and fishing area on Ballard Creek, which feeds into the Illinois River.
Cramer said wildlife officials considered but ruled out the option of capturing the animal and taking it to a wildlife refuge. “The problem was where it was at,” he said.
Cramer said there is a natural habitat for alligators in McCurtain County, the most southeastern county in the state.
Reginald Murray, owner of Oklahoma Wildlife Control and an expert in wildlife removal, said he gets calls about alligators and imported caiman, which are native to South America, regularly in the Tulsa area, including in the Arkansas and Verdigris rivers.
Murray said he notifies the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation when he removes an alligator and then releases it in southeastern Oklahoma.
“If it has attacked somebody, it’ll be put down,” he said.
There is no open season for alligator hunting in Oklahoma, so shooting one would be illegal for the general public.
“We want to make it clear that the public is not allowed to take matters into its own hands,” Cramer said. “We want the public to notify the Wildlife Department when these types of things happen so we can take proper measures to take care of it. We have protocol for that situation.”
Murray said he believes that the Oklahoma alligator population is due to migration via the Sabine River, which borders Louisiana and Texas, as well as human owners who release them when they become too large for them to handle.
Cramer said the alligator he killed Sunday “most likely … had been in captivity for the majority of its life and released by someone.”
Read more from this Tulsa World article at http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=11&articleid=20110629_11_0_WTSAli381482