Bait

From the Miami Herald-

WEST PALM BEACH - (AP) -- State wildlife officials have recommended that alligators be downgraded from species of special concern to game within five years.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission also ruled Monday that homeowners be allowed to kill nuisance alligators on their property or hire a trapper to do so. How to dispose of the animal once captured is still in question, said program coordinator Harry Dutton.

''It's likely that selling the alligator wouldn't be allowed, but a homeowner could eat it at home,'' Dutton said.

The recommendations come after the first comprehensive review of the state's alligator management program in its 20-year history. The commission will consider the recommendations at its December meeting.

My only problem with any policy change, is that we'll see some Florida residents kill gators just for pleasure, like game hunters. I guess if someone can shoot a deer, they can kill an alligator too.

Then one question remains- What will hunters use to catch or kill a gator? Live animals? Mama mia......

Lake Worth trapper Rick Kramer may have summed it up right.

You'll have a lot of hurt people and injured gators running around,'' Kramer said. ``You make a mistake with an alligator, and it can do some damage.''

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