An alligator was spotted in one of the University lakes recently, and the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries is in the process of killing the reptile.
The wildlife department contacted University Facility Services employees Monday to inform them of the sighting and ask for permission to obtain the alligator.
The alligator is suspected to be around 6 feet long.
LDWF spokesman Bo Boehringer said there are, on average, 5,000 alligator-sighting calls a year throughout Louisiana.
“Just about any water body is alligator habitat,” he said. “And there’s enough good habitat at the University Lake and fish species to sustain life.”
Boehringer said the alligator is likely to stay away from humans but advised people to be cautious. If sighted, he said people should give the alligator plenty of space.
“Do not approach them. Do not attempt to feed them,” he said. “And there should not be a problem.”
Boehringer said the department usually sends a licensed hunter to put baited hooks in the water. The hunter then returns at a later time to see if the alligator was caught.
“At this time, the hooks have not been placed,” he said. “We are still in that process.”
Noel Kinler, alligator program manager, said the hunter is having trouble locating the alligator.
“The nuisance hunter that was assigned to attempt to locate the gator could not,” he said. “That’s normal, because you could see them for a day or two and then not see them again.”
Hunters earn payment by selling the alligators for an average of $30 per foot.
Kinler said harvesting, or killing, the nuisance alligators is safer than giving them the chance to enter another public body of water.
“Once they get acclimated to people, typically, they will put themselves in that position again,” he said.
Boehringer said students should rest assured that the department is working to capture the nuisance gator.
“The goal is to remove the gator with no harm to the public and no public disruption,” he said.
But Boehringer said there should be no surprise if another is sighted.
“This isn’t the first incident we’ve had reported from there,” he said. “And it certainly won’t be the last.”
 
 
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