June 1 – Florida Man Takes a Gator For a Dog Until It Bites Him

What was believed to be a safe walk down a Florida Motel turned almost deadly when a huge gator closely crept behind a Florida man. The victim says he thought the gator was a dog on a long leash, so he was unfazed. However, before long, the man felt excruciating pain in his leg as the gator bit off a huge chunk of flesh.

A Florida man was walking about a Motel in Southwest Florida when the gator attacked him from behind. The 7-foot reptile walked up to him through a dark lawn, which made him take it for a dog. After the reptile ate off a chunk of flesh from his leg, the man was fortunate because cops arrived at the scene in good time. One of the sergeants pounced on the reptile’s middle back, folded it, and taped it “into a ball,” per a witness account. What a typical Florida man who didn’t have to get the right certifications to neutralize a deadly gator attack!

The 49-year-old victim was then rushed to hospital, with later reports stating he was responding to treatment.

The police thought the alligator came from the motel drain, raising the question of why many of these animals come out to man, leaving their natural habitat. In 2023 alone, alligator attack cases amounted to roughly 20, most of which were when the victims went near water bodies while a significant percentage had left their natural habitat. Could it be they have to leave to keep their young ones alive or could it be humans are to blame for trying to feed them?

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission advises against feeding such animals as that would increase their animosity toward humans. So, instead of thanking humans for giving them human food, they would become aggressive toward them.

See Also:

• Florida Man Files – May 31
• Florida Man Stories – May 30
• Florida Man Chronicle – May 29

June 1 – Florida Man Dies After Ignoring Alligator Warning Signs At Lake in Florida Golf Course

The gator involved in the killing was found and trapped.

A Florida man thought he knew better when he went searching for Frisbees in an alligator-infested lake. He didn’t survive the reptile attack. This, he did despite a few signs warning alligators were in the waters. Before long, the man was attacked and killed, per the Largo Police Department reports.

John S. Taylor Park in Largo, a suburb of St. Petersburg, covers 153 acres (62 hectares) and is meant to offer recreative activities like the disc golf course “in natural beauty.” The authorities discourage frequenting the lake because of the history of alligator attacks.

Alligators seem to have a particular disposition toward Largo. Just soon after the incident county sheriffs found a 13-foot alligator in a canal with human remains in its mouth. The reptile was euthanized and “humanely” killed after the rescue team also found human remains in the water. Measuring 13ft 8.5 inches, the animal was the main suspect in the victim’s death, even as investigators worked to establish that.

Deadly alligator attacks are not so common in the United States, averaging 6 per year. However, unprovoked attacks are, considering there are about a million gators in Florida alone. The state have once recorded about 8 unprovoked gator attacks per year for a decade on people who have warranted medical services.

Jamarcus Bullard had spotted an alligator at which he threw a stone to establish if it was really the animal. The man said the gator posed as if it held onto its lower torso and “pulling it underwater.” So, Bullard recorded it and sent the video clip to authorities. Soon after, investigators established the gator had killed a 41-year-old woman who had been caught trespassing on a wetland, a few blocks from where her remains were recovered.