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Alligator found in Del Valle pond following report of a dog attack
The American alligator is common in swamps, rivers, bayous, and marshes of the southern U.S., including the eastern third of Texas.
DEL VALLE, Texas - It didn’t take long for two Texas Game Wardens to find what they were looking for at a Del Valle neighborhood pond.
The wardens' search led to a concrete culvert and the discovery of what was living in the darkness. A gator not only could be heard, but with a flashlight, several eyes were also spotted just above the surface of the water. While some of those eyes were otters, it was uncertain if the gator also had babies.
Most residents of the Berdoll Farms subdivision have known a gator was in this pond, as warning signs were put up after it first made news about 15 years ago. However, the report of a dog being attacked is something many have worried would eventually happen.
"If they’ve gotten aggressive I think they should be relocated," said Tiffany Nuckols, whose home backs up to the pond. She also used to jog on the trail that circles the pond but stopped when pictures confirmed they had a gator as a neighbor.
The possibility of a gator family living in a nearby culvert is not welcome news. "If they are having babies, it’s going to continue to grow, and they don’t pay taxes," said Nuckols with a slight laugh.
It didn’t take long for two Texas Game Wardens to find what they were looking for at a Del Valle neighborhood pond.
It’s not known how the gator, or gators, got into the pond, but it is a natural habitat. Travis County is actually on the northern edge of territory for alligators, according to Jonathan Warner, the Alligator Program leader with Texas Parks and Wildlife.
"Really when it comes to nuisance alligators, it doesn’t sound like this is a true case of a nuisance gator as it has lost its sense of fear of people, and it’s turned aggressive," said Warner.
Friday afternoon, Warner told FOX7 that investigators had not been able to confirm a gator attacked a neighborhood dog. Not knowing for sure what the risk is has resident Kelly Moore on her guard.
"It’s unique, I feel like it’s being here, in Del Valle, in a suburb, maybe they belong to be in a different area where they are more safe, and nothing can harm them or any dogs or even kids," said Moore.
Safely co-existing comes with specific rules.
"Encourage common sense, don’t feed alligators, don’t approach them, certainly if there is a nesting female, don’t approach her or by no means try to catch her or kill an alligator, like many other nuisance wildlife we have a protocol in place, and certainly will cross that bridge when it comes to public safety," said Warner.
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