TEXARKANA MAGAZINE
GATOR GLUT BY STEPHANIE HARRIS Did the efforts to protect the American Alligator become overly successful?
T his is no doubt an effort that is appreciated by all nature lovers, but the current alligator populations in South Arkansas continue to increase at an alarming rate. Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC) Tech Blake Keener said the problem at Beard’s Lake Park, part of Millwood Lake, stemmed from people illegally feeding the alligators. Alligators are skittish of humans, and feeding them can cause their natural fear of humans to dissipate. “There have been warnings given out here for that,” said Millwood State Park Superintendent Eric Lindy. According to the AGFC website, between 1860 and 1960, alligator populations throughout the southeastern United States were “severely depleted,” reaching an all-time low, due to habitat loss and unregulated hunting. In 1961, AGFC enacted a regulation to protect alligators. According to Millwood Lake Guide Service owner Mike Siefert, severe depletion is the opposite of the current issue. Millwood Lake is a 29,260-acre lake in the southwest corner of Arkansas in Little
River County, 16 miles upstream from its confluence with the Red River. It is a popular lake for bass fishing tournaments and birding. Siefert says he’s been “voicing concern about the problem for years” but admits there is no easy fix. U.S. Congress passed legislation in March 1967 listing the alligator as endangered. In January 1977, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) downlisted the alligator from endangered to threatened. In 1987, it was delisted to recovered status, eventually saying populations were stable. An agreement was made years ago between the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and the AGFC for a restocking program. Around 80 percent of those alligators were released on private lands at the owner’s request, believing they would control populations of rough fish, turtles, venomous snakes, and beavers. Siefert disagrees that “stable” accurately depicts the current situations in Millwood and other water bodies in South Arkansas. “It is a multifaceted problem. I have an 18-and-a-half-foot bass boat
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COMMUNITY & CULTURE
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