TAMPA, Fla. (WSVN) — A resident in Tampa says he was sound asleep until loud banging noises startled him awake.
Jason Rogers initially thought someone was trying to break into his home. But when he peeked through his kitchen window, he spotted the source of the ruckus: a 7-foot-long alligator, slamming against the side of his house.
“It was really scary, just because of the sheer size, I could tell it was over 6 feet,” Rogers told Fox 13.
He called police, who called for the Florida Wildlife Conservation Commission for backup to help capture the gator. FWC Trapper Robb Upgrove says the upcoming mating season means the reptiles have a lot of pent-up energy.
“They’re pumped up, they’re wanting to reproduce, so they don’t want you messing with them,” he said.
Rogers says he’s a native Floridian, so he knows it’s not uncommon to see alligators in the Sunshine State.
“But when the get that close and they’re that big, yeah, it was a cause for concern,” he said.
The female alligator will be transferred to a gator farm, the trapper says.
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