HHI-Alligators??

[pbharris4]

We're thinking of staying in Hilton Head next year in addition to our yearly Disney trip. We'll be renting a villa (not enough points to stay at Disney's HHI) in The Moorings which is pretty close to Disney's Beach House in Palmetto Dunes. Are there a lot of alligators there? We'll be bringing our 2 shih tzus with us as well.

I've heard they frequent lagoons which are evrywhere down there. I am now freaked out that a gator will jump out and eat my 2 little girls or my 2 small dogs. I saw a picture on the net of a 6 foot gator at a lady's front door (it had smelled her teriayki chicken)! My aunt who use to live in Beaufort had one in her backyard as well. I am being silly by being worried?

 

[Simba's Mom]

When I first saw them in people's backyards, like this, I kind of freaked!

Right at the foot of someone's back porch!
But after talking to some natives, apparently the alligators are generally not at all aggressive. It's one of those "If you don't bother them, they won't bother you." I've never seen one go after anything.

 

[JPC]

Great workout. I roped a couple at my last stay.

 

[kimberh]

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I live in the Lowcountry, Gators love Dogs. My Black Lab got out of our yard last Monday, I was a wreck until we could get her back in, she was heading staight to the water, which is full of gators.
To the OP, keep you little dogs on a lease, your children will be fine. Do not get into a pond that has gators in it. We had one jump out and attack a Pit Bull last summer. The Pit Bull bit the Gator back, he was able to survive. This was by my house, on the walking trail. Again, I want to stress, the dog was on the walking trail. The owners were with the dog, It made all the local news.

 

[WebmasterDoc]

We've never seen any near the DVC resort, but have seen LOTS of gators in other areas, including down at Sea Pines. Many are much larger than 6' too.

As kimberh noted, just keep your dogs leashed and stay away from the ponds. The gators will not be in any salt water habitat - only freshwater.

 

[Judique]

We're thinking of staying in Hilton Head next year in addition to our yearly Disney trip. We'll be renting a villa (not enough points to stay at Disney's HHI) in The Moorings which is pretty close to Disney's Beach House in Palmetto Dunes. Are there a lot of alligators there? We'll be bringing our 2 shih tzus with us as well.

I've heard they frequent lagoons which are evrywhere down there. I am now freaked out that a gator will jump out and eat my 2 little girls or my 2 small dogs. I saw a picture on the net of a 6 foot gator at a lady's front door (it had smelled her teriayki chicken)! My aunt who use to live in Beaufort had one in her backyard as well. I am being silly by being worried?

There is quite a bit of water in Palmetto Dunes. I haven't been on foot in there enough to see any gators, but I have seen them in other areas near by. I would think you would be okay with such small dogs if you watched them and kept them on a leash while outside. It's doubtful you'd have any problems on the beach. I think the key would be to keep your eyes open while out walking near fresh water.

 

[JimMIA]

Great workout. I roped a couple at my last stay.

Real men don't use ropes!

 

[JimMIA]

An assortment of fascinating and mostly useless facts about alligators:

A six-foot alligator may look big to you, but it's a juvenile. Alligators reach maturity by size, not age, and they are not considered adults until they are almost seven feet.

An alligator is not a grazing animal, and an alligator is not your friend. Alligators are top-level, carnivorous predators. A four-footer can ruin your day and one of those little six-foot juvies can easily kill any adult human. You can't fully appreciate an alligator's strength until you see one 10-footer pick another 10-footer up in its mouth and throw it 5-10 feet.

In the Everglades, our average alligator is 8-9 feet and we consider any gator over 10 feet to be a "big" alligator. Our biggest alligators are 13-14 feet. However, the Everglades is a very nutrient-poor ecosystem; farther north in their range (like Hilton Head) you can add about a foot to all of the sizes above except the maturity size.

The largest alligator ever taken was 19'2" and was killed by a gentleman whose name escapes me, but who was the inventor of Tabasco Sauce. (As our neighbor Dave Barry would say, "I am not making this up.")

Our Everglades alligators do not speak Chinese, so they can't pronounce "shih tzu." Possibly because of the Latin influence here, they use one generic word to describe all dogs weighing less than about 20 pounds -- "Tapas."

Larger dogs like shepherds and rottweilers, they call "munchies." Munchies have more food value than tapas, but they'll take either one in the blink of an eye. By contrast, a deer is an entree.

The only thing worse than dogs around alligators is people walking dogs around alligators, which tends to double the victim count. When visitors to ENP question why they can't take their little doggies on the trails, we always tell them, "Because it is against the law to feed the alligators."

Contrary to urban legend, alligators cannot leap small buildings, nor are they faster than a speeding bullet. However...they can jump almost their entire length out of the water, and routinely take birds perched 4-5 feet above the water surface. Any alligator smaller than about 8 feet is also much faster than you on land. A 10 footer is slower than an 8-footer, so if you're going to get into a footrace, pick a big alligator to offend. (Note: there is this one little downside to ticking off a big one! )

Any time you see an alligator less than 3 feet long, your first thought should not be "Oh that's SO cute! "

Your first thought should be "Where's Momma? " Young alligators stay with their mother until they are about 3-3 1/2 feet long -- and they do that because Momma protects them. Got it?

 

[kimberh]

Well said JimMIA, We have 11ft ones at our lake house. The Gators are taking over our freshwater lakes and rivers here. We have pleanty of small ones, 6ft is very common. We are about 20 miles from Charleston, 100 miles for HHI. 25 years ago, we saw gators in the river, but not the lakes and ponds, now everywhere.

 

[JimMIA]

Well said JimMIA, We have 11ft ones at our lake house. The Gators are taking over our freshwater lakes and rivers here. We have pleanty of small ones, 6ft is very common. We are about 20 miles from Charleston, 100 miles for HHI. 25 years ago, we saw gators in the river, but not the lakes and ponds, now everywhere.

Yep, if they were beautiful, they'd be the poster children for the Endangered Species Act. But I think the Bald Eagle has that distinction locked up.

Back in the '60's when alligators were first protected, there were only 35,000-40,000 of them left. The last figures I saw said there were about 1.5 million alligators today, but I don't think we really have a very good handle on how many there are.

One of many unique things about South Florida rolleyes1 ) is that we are the only place on Earth where alligators and crocodiles coexist. We have both the American Alligator and the American Crocodile.

 

[CarolA]

Just a note. Dogs are only allowed on the beach during certain hours of the day during the busy season at Hilton Head

Beach rules regarding pets

Animal Regulations:

April 1, 2007 - May 25, 2007 - Animals must be on a leash between 10 AM and 5 PM.
The Friday before Memorial Day (5/25/07) until Monday of Labor Day weekend - NO animals allowed on the beach between 10 AM - 5 PM.
Tuesday after Labor Day - September 30, 2007 - Animals must be on a leash from 10 AM - 5 PM.
October 1, 2007 - April 1, 2008 - No leashes required at any time. The animal IS required to be under positive voice control.
On the beach or not, local law requires owners to clean up after their pets

 

[pcparamedics01]

When I first saw them in people's backyards, like this, I kind of freaked!

Right at the foot of someone's back porch!
But after talking to some natives, apparently the alligators are generally not at all aggressive. It's one of those "If you don't bother them, they won't bother you." I've never seen one go after anything.

Yikes! I have never seen a gator at HHI and I had marsh view.

 

[pbharris4]

An assortment of fascinating and mostly useless facts about alligators:

Our Everglades alligators do not speak Chinese, so they can't pronounce "shih tzu." Possibly because of the Latin influence here, they use one generic word to describe all dogs weighing less than about 20 pounds -- "Tapas."

Larger dogs like shepherds and rottweilers, they call "munchies." Munchies have more food value than tapas, but they'll take either one in the blink of an eye. By contrast, a deer is an entree.

That's funny!

I found this on the web. I guess it happened last year.
http://www.islandpacket.com/news/local/story/5795583p-5177866c.html

Now..that's one aggressive Avon lady!!!

Maybe I'll leave the pooches at home.

 

[LisaS]

I found this on the web. I guess it happened last year.
http://www.islandpacket.com/news/local/story/5795583p-5177866c.html

"Candy gram!"

 

[Mai Ku Tiki]

An assortment of fascinating and mostly useless facts about alligators:

A six-foot alligator may look big to you, but it's a juvenile. Alligators reach maturity by size, not age, and they are not considered adults until they are almost seven feet.

An alligator is not a grazing animal, and an alligator is not your friend. Alligators are top-level, carnivorous predators. A four-footer can ruin your day and one of those little six-foot juvies can easily kill any adult human. You can't fully appreciate an alligator's strength until you see one 10-footer pick another 10-footer up in its mouth and throw it 5-10 feet.

In the Everglades, our average alligator is 8-9 feet and we consider any gator over 10 feet to be a "big" alligator. Our biggest alligators are 13-14 feet. However, the Everglades is a very nutrient-poor ecosystem; farther north in their range (like Hilton Head) you can add about a foot to all of the sizes above except the maturity size.

The largest alligator ever taken was 19'2" and was killed by a gentleman whose name escapes me, but who was the inventor of Tabasco Sauce. (As our neighbor Dave Barry would say, "I am not making this up.")

Our Everglades alligators do not speak Chinese, so they can't pronounce "shih tzu." Possibly because of the Latin influence here, they use one generic word to describe all dogs weighing less than about 20 pounds -- "Tapas."

Larger dogs like shepherds and rottweilers, they call "munchies." Munchies have more food value than tapas, but they'll take either one in the blink of an eye. By contrast, a deer is an entree.

The only thing worse than dogs around alligators is people walking dogs around alligators, which tends to double the victim count. When visitors to ENP question why they can't take their little doggies on the trails, we always tell them, "Because it is against the law to feed the alligators."

Contrary to urban legend, alligators cannot leap small buildings, nor are they faster than a speeding bullet. However...they can jump almost their entire length out of the water, and routinely take birds perched 4-5 feet above the water surface. Any alligator smaller than about 8 feet is also much faster than you on land. A 10 footer is slower than an 8-footer, so if you're going to get into a footrace, pick a big alligator to offend. (Note: there is this one little downside to ticking off a big one! )

Any time you see an alligator less than 3 feet long, your first thought should not be "Oh that's SO cute! "

Your first thought should be "Where's Momma? " Young alligators stay with their mother until they are about 3-3 1/2 feet long -- and they do that because Momma protects them. Got it?

Thank you!

 

[Conan the Librarian]

Gators...the Rats of the lowcountry! You leave them alone and they will leave you alone. Do NOT feed the gators.

Gators are only a problem if they are hungry, crocodiles are just mean.

Like always, keep your eyes open, and, if you see one, give it the right of way.

If you DO want to see gators, come down to Savannah by way of Old Highway 17 (not over the big bridge) and go through the Savannah River Wildlife Refuge. There are tons of them there.

 

[pcparamedics01]

An assortment of fascinating and mostly useless facts about alligators:

Ha Ha but not useless to most. You always have useful info!!!

 

[JPC]

Real men don't use ropes!

I hear ya. My wife made me use the ropes because she said not to hurt the DVC gators.

 

[WebmasterDoc]

Yikes! I have never seen a gator at HHI and I had marsh view.

There aren't likely to be any gators in the marsh at the DVC resort because it's a brine marsh (salt water) and gators are freshwater critters. The ponds across 278 on the way to the beach are a common habitat and we've seen many in those ponds.

 

[JimMIA]

This is what we deal with every day!

Incidentally, just in case this guy's not moron enough in terms of his own safety (and his girlfriend with the camera) look at the two small kids only a few feet behind him. This is a small alligator (3 1/2 feet probably), but it's plenty big enough to give someone a very bad bite.

It didn't, of course.