Florida Weighs Special Gator Hunting Lottery

ORLANDO, FLORIDA — Sportsmen in Florida might be getting a chance to hunt some of Florida’s most famous and dangerous game. 

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission is considering a proposal at their December 5 meeting in Orlando that would provide “greater flexibility” for hunters to get special permits to hunt alligators. 

A 2021 directive from the commission had the goal of expanding hunting opportunities, and this proposal would be a limited step in expansion. Currently, alligator hunting is quite restrictive. 

As it stands, sportsmen are only permitted to hunt on alligator management units for one of the four weeks of alligator hunting season. 

The rule change would allow as many as five people to acquire the special permits and hunt throughout the season in any alligator management unit, on public wetlands where access is allowed, or on private property.

The five people will be selected through random draw. However, hunters can have their name entered in the drawing an unlimited amount of times as long as they pay $5 for each entry. A $250 fee will also be levied against Florida applicants, and a $750 fee for non-Floridians. 

Still only two gators will be permitted to be harvested per hunter. 

ALLIGATORS EXITING THE SWAMP

Florida has seen an increase in alligators being killed due to nuisances – 8,256 in 2022 compared to 8,178 in 2021. 

Similarly, reporting in 2022 showed that Southwest Florida’s population expansion further inland is causing the alligators to resort to other bodies of water. Additionally, people beginning to feed the alligators could potentially be leading to more alligator nuisance calls. 

"We’re going further inland, taking up more swamp areas, more areas where these animals can be," said one Southwest Florida animal behaviorist. "They're going to be coming into canals looking for new territories."