Al the alligator was the first relocated reptile to arrive at Shallotte River Swamp Park.
The rescue gator was brought to the outdoor adventure park on Watts Road on the night of July 1. This summer, the park is working with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission to provide a new enclosed area for relocated gators. Those types of gators are ones that have typically become overly acclimated and less fearful of civilization, often attributed to people who have been feeding them.
The alligators will be available for viewing by swamp park customers and educational events conducted daily at the park off Ocean Isle Beach Road.
Owner Rube McMullan said, Al is the park’s first gator relocated in conjunction with the state wildlife department, otherwise it faced being euthanized. Now the park is offering Al a second chance at life while providing an educational experience for visitors.
Less than two weeks after Al’s arrival, wildlife officers brought another, younger gator, nicknamed “Alli,” to the swamp park to join her predecessor in a separate portion of the reptile enclosure area.
Alli, who’s about two months old and measures two feet long, had been confiscated and rescued by the wildlife commission from Guilford County. These gators and any others to be brought to the park are being treated to new homes. As an added bonus, they’re feasting on fresh catch — discarded fish carcasses that are regularly generated by the fishing fleet at Ocean Isle Fishing Center.
Previously, when the wildlife commission has had to remove problem alligators from subdivisions and golf courses, the gators have been released into the Green Swamp and other areas away from civilization.
The park’s new alligator enclosure, located in a swampy section within viewing distance of the aerial adventure, swamp boat and zipline park, will serve as a facility where the gators that are brought in can have a nice, happy life.
The park will also be working with the wildlife department to maintain up-to-date records on its two new reptile residents, who are being kept in separate containment areas because larger and smaller gators don’t get along. There are also mandates about the gators’ containment areas, which require permits and specifications for fencing.
The fenced-in area goes into the ground 24 inches and comes out toward the interior, so there’s no ability for burrowing access in and out. The fenced areas consist of 50 percent water and 50 percent land. All reptiles are cold-blooded, so they have to thermo-regulate and cool themselves.
Al and Alli are just the first starter gators at Shallotte River Swamp Park, which is the only private wildlife-permitted alligator enclosure area in North Carolina.
The Swamp Park is learning new things and about best practices every day when it comes to caring for the gators, including what they should eat. They’re eating turtle food, fish food and fish heads — all different things. The gators need to have a well-balanced diet, just like humans, and the park is responsible for ensuring they don’t get overwhelmed.
Officials at the park are also expecting its gator population to grow in the near future.
Article originally appeared in the Brunswick Beacon. Photo Credit: Brunswick Beacon.