You would think that this would be self-evident, but I guess not.
For the most part, encounters between alligators and humans are harmless. Already this season in Harris County, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has logged more than 25 calls for nuisance alligators, two of them within the past week, and all have ended amicably — for the humans, at least.
But wildlife officials warn that the reptiles can be dangerous during this active season if provoked.
“A lot of people will throw a piece of bread at the animal and say, ‘Come here,’ ” said Amos Cooper, alligator program leader at the J.D. Murphree Wildlife Management Area in Port Arthur. “The best thing to do is not to mess with it and give it two to three days to move along. If you feed it, they’ll lose their fear of humans, and that’s the worst thing.”
I got nothing. I mean, seriously, telling a gator to “come here”? What, do you want to pet it? There are days when I marvel at the fact that our species has managed to survive this long.