Florida Alligator Hunting Guides and Outfitters

Alligator, of the genus Alligator, family Alligatoridae. Only two species exist: A. mississipiensic, confined to the south-eastern United States including Florida where alligator hunting guides and outfitter have services that are offered for trips and guided hunts for this big game. These creatures live mainly in freshwater swamps, lakes, and bayous; and A. sinensis, confined to the basin of the Yangtze River in China. Adult American alligators are about 6 to 20 feet long and are a prize trophy from a hunt, whereas the Chinese alligator seldom exceeds five feet.

Distinguishing features are that the snout is broad, flattened, and rounded, rather than long and triangular as in other crocodilians, and the teeth in the upper jaw overlie those in the lower jaw. The feet are webbed to about the middle; the bony plates of the back are not articulated together, and the undersurface has not plates.

Alligators feed on fish, frogs, snakes, turtles, birds, mammals, and carrion; they are known to attack Florida hunters or even people on a golfing trip or those who just got too close to this big game animal. In the spring the principal activity of both sexes is the search for a mate. Both male and female alligators bellow often, perhaps to announce their presence. Unwanted intruders are confronted with ritual gaping, lunging, and hissing. The courtship behavior is sedate and involves prolonged stroking of the female by the mail. After the mating, the male seeks his own territory while the female finds a site nearby, above the flood level, to build a nest of mud and water plants. The eggs, from 30 to 60 in a clutch, are covered with mud and incubated in the heat of the sun while the female guards the site. After the eggs hatch, in about 60 days, the female cares for the young, carrying them in her mouth or leading them about. They remain with her until the following spring. The parental behavior of alligators is one of several distinctive features that emphasize the distance between crocodilians and all other reptiles and point to their affinity with birds. Florida has regulated alligator hunting for guides and outfitters that offer hunts and trips to this state.

Florida Hunting Season Schedule

Florida Hunting License

United States Weather

Hunted for generations both for sport and for its hide, which is made into highly prized leather, the American alligator dwindled until it was declared an endangered species in 1967. Under this protection it made a strong comeback and became bolder in the presence of humans, even coming onto the lawns of homes alongside riverbanks to accept offers of food. Little more than a decade later, hunting was again allowed in some of these states {including Florida} that once protected the alligator from hunting.