The SSAR Conservation Committee applauds the decision of the North Carolina Wildlife Resource Commission (NCWRC) to create an Alligator Task Force! Careful study of North Carolina’s alligator populations will provide guidelines to conserve and manage the species for the future.
Photo credit: Todd Pierson
We got involved in this issue in early January, when the NCWRC proposed opening a hunting season for alligators. When the public comment period opened, the SSAR Conservation Committee submitted a letter urging scientific study of North Carolina’s alligators before a hunting season is established. We hope that the North Carolina Alligator Task Force will look more carefully at each of the points in our letter, detailed below.
Reasons to gather more evidence before an alligator hunting season is established in North Carolina:
- Studies indicate that North Carolina’s alligator population will decline if a hunting season is established.
- North Carolina’s advisory Reptile and Amphibian Scientific Commission supports the alligator’s current ‘Threatened’ population status because it is very rare.
- North Carolina is the alligator’s northern range limit, and the cold creates conditions where alligators mature and reproduce more slowly than in the rest of its range.
- The proposed hunting season is to fall during the alligator nesting season, which will affect females guarding nests.
- Depredation permits are available for ‘nuisance’ alligators in the state, so a hunting season to prevent human-wildlife conflict is redundant. On average, 20 depredation permits are issued each year.
Photo credit: Todd Pierson
Media reporting on the Commission’s decision can be found here.
Tips for living with the iconic American alligator come from the NCWRC website.
