CLARION-LEDGER (Jackson, Mississippi) 18 September 07 Gotcha gators: 66 harvested from Reservoir; record set (Bobby Cleveland)
Mississippi's record for alligator hunting grew by the slightest of margins over the weekend, as hunters continued to find the biggest reptiles on Ross Barnett Reservoir.
The largest of the 66 gators caught over the two three-day weekend seasons was a 13 foot, 3/4-inch monster taken Saturday night by John McLeod of Brandon.
"That is the new record, barely," said Ricky Flynt, the alligator project coordinator for the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks, certifying that McLeod's gator was just 3/4-inch longer than the 13-foot even entry of John Ratcliff of Canton in 2006.
Ratcliff has some consolation. His 571-pound behemoth was much thicker, much healthier and weighed 185 pounds more than McLeod's entry (386).
"That was one of the poorest bull alligators I have ever seen on Barnett or anywhere," Flynt said. "Normally, a 13-footer should weigh between 500 or 600 pounds, and maybe more.
"I don't know if there was something wrong with this gator, but obviously it was not getting its share of the food. There are a lot of alligators out there and a lot of competition for the food."
Therein lies a main reason why the alligator seasons were initiated three years ago on Barnett, where the animals thrived under protection of the threatened species act.
"The population out there is the most dense that we have in Mississippi," Flynt said, adding that 3,000 would be a conservative estimate for the number that reside in the 33,000-acre lake.
By depleting the numbers, it takes pressure off a stressed habitat and by allowing hunting, it gives sportsmen a chance to use the meat and hide taken. A 12-foot, 3-inch alligator weighing 484 pounds, which is what Billy Williams of Florence caught last Friday, can yield over 100 pounds of meat and bring about $30 a foot for the treasured underside skin.
"I was really hoping to see at least 80 alligators taken this year," Flynt said. "We upped the limit to two gators per hunter to increase the harvest, and the reason we made one of the two be under 7 feet in length was to take more of the younger alligators.
"Turns out, we had 36 alligators taken over 7 feet and just 30 under 7 feet, but that still represents an increase in the number of smaller gators compared to the last two years. We had 12 teams get both of their gators."
Alligator hunters have proven very effective at finding the bigger reptiles, some of which could be as old as the 40-year-old lake.
"A 12- to 13-foot alligator, you're looking at a minimum of 25 years of age and more likely 30 plus, so it is conceivable that one could be as old as the Rez," Flynt said. "They've always been out there, and we've never had an incident. You just need to know they're out there, and respect them when you're in their habitat."
Most people aren't aware of the thriving existence of gators on Barnett, even frequent boaters, because the beasts are nocturnal.
Hunting was allowed from 6 p.m. to midnight, to coincide with the period when they are actively seeking food. Hunters were usually well after midnight checking out at the Turcotte Lab and Education Center just up Mississippi 43 from the Goshen Springs Landing.
A sign of the growing interest in the season is that an average of 1,200 applicants have entered the drawing each year for Barnett, and crowds have grown at the boat ramps and weigh-in to get a look a the big ones.
David Livingston of Morton participated in the hunt for the third time, this year only as a guide and an assistant.
"When I didn't get drawn, I was not very happy," he said. "I started looking for a way to get to participate, but I didn't know anybody who had a permit."
Livingston eventually hooked up with Williams and caught their brute whose head measured 48 inches around at the jaws.
"I'd been trying to get a permit for three years and finally got drawn," said Williams. "We had a boat but we were going to have to buy all the accessories, so when I saw he had it all and wanted to go, that was easy."
Ratcliff was not in the crowd of about 100 onlookers Saturday night when McLeod beat his record by three quarters of an inch. Instead, he was in Pascagoula scouting the hunting there.
"I put in for that hunt, too, and good thing," Ratcliff said. "I didn't get drawn on Barnett this year. I hated that, but I hear they grow 'em even bigger and fatter down there."
Two Weekends Of Alligator Hunting, By The Numbers:
- Length of new record taken by John McLeod of Brandon 13' 3/4"
- Total number of permitted hunters to participate (120 drawn) 108
- Total alligators harvested 66
- Estimated number of alligators caught and released alive 90
Gotcha gators: 66 harvested from Reservoir;