Sunday, February 17, 2019

Useful Information Regarding Gator Hunts

By Martha Long


Alligators are a hot topic in states such as Arkansas, Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Texas, and South Carolina. People in these states are used to living among alligators because these animals are many in numbers. They swim in local water bodies and sometimes invite themselves into personal spaces such as door steps and swimming pools. Some people have also had awful encounters with these animals. Here are facts regarding Gator hunts.

Actually, recently, there has been a rise in the population of alligators to levels that are dangerous such that controlling them is required. It is because of this that the law permits controlled hunting of alligators today. A time once occurred when hunting these animals was not controlled and they were hunted by people until they were almost extinct. There was an intervention by the government that led to the ban of this activity so that the population of alligators could rise.

During the ban period, gators rose in numbers and started becoming a problem again. Because they are characterized as apex predators in their habitat, other animals cannot threaten their population. As such, their population can always grow uncontrollably. Once this became an issue, hunting of gators was made legal by the government but only for some limited time each year.

State governments regulate gator hunting. This implies that it is their responsibility to issue licensing to hunters and control the performance of the activity within state boundaries. The gator hunting open seasons in a majority of the states begins in August and ends in November. Residents are given approximately 2 months to hunt.

The hunter must bear a license in order for them to hunt within the state. Licenses are not transferrable, which means that only the person whose name is on the license can use it. Similarly, the license stops being valid when one moves outside the state that issued it. If one has to move to a different state, they must make the application afresh.

Making an application for a permit involves payment of a fee. The fee should be paid in full before one can be given the license. Usually, a license is given one month in advance before the start of the open season. The name of the applicant and the state that issued it is indicated on the license. One must always carry the license with them whenever they are hunting.

There is a variance in the quantity of permits that is issued in each state. For example, there are only 5000 permits issued in Florida every year. The permits allow every holder to only hunt two alligators in the open season. Exceeding this number is prohibited. It is also possible to grant licenses to out of the state applicants who come from other states. However, these applicants have to pay more for the license than what residents pay.

Random drawings are used to issue licenses because there are usually more applicants that hope to get them. Biasness is eliminated when random drawing is used. Licensed individuals are only permitted to hunt on public land. One must get permission from a property owner if they wish to hunt on private land.




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