Animal management workers recently removed an 11-foot-long, 500-pound alligator from a tiny lagoon just north of Pope Avenue on Hilton Head Island. See the amazing creature in these photos from the Island Packet.
Alligators are perhaps Hilton Head’s best-known wildlife, though not the most loved! Over the years, locals have an arrangement with the alligators: leave them alone and they’ll leave you alone. Though not normally aggressive toward humans, it’s worth sharing a few tips that will help keep you a safe distance from these mysterious and interesting creatures.
- Alligators are cold-blooded, relying on their environment to survive. During colder weather, alligators come out of their lagoons to bask in the sun and raise their body temperature. In warmer weather, they stay in the water to keep cool.
- Alligators typically nest May through August, and mothers protect their young for one to three years. A mother alligator protecting her nest is nearly the only time an alligator will attack without provocation. Take care in wooded or brushy areas near lagoons.
- Feeding alligators is illegal. If an alligator sees humans as a source of food, it will approach. Since alligators lack social skills, they won’t ask nicely.
- Never let small children or pets play in or along the banks of lagoons. Alligators are notoriously fast.
- If you catch a fish in a lagoon and an alligator wants it, give it up. Never compete with an alligator for food!
- The fact is that alligators were here long before we were and will be here for a long time to come. Admire them from a distance and enjoy their raw, natural beauty.
