For years my wife did not believe me when I told her that there are gators in the TN river. Well today we were leaving Limestone creek about a quarter mile from the main river. I’m having to dodge debris left and right. I notice one stick in the water. Hmmm looks funny. I get within 10 ft and it sinks. I said look alligator. About that time it comes up behind the boat. 6 footer. Now she is a believer. Lmao.

50 or so in wheeler

There was a big one in Lay in the late 90's. Don't know about now.

Choot im

there are way more than 50 gators in wheeler.

You can say that again.

My info came from an article i read about it. It said 50 were put in there and they lived and did well but were not able to reproduce. I dont have any firsthand knowledge about the subject.

Saw a 5-6' er at a boat house I was working on last spring. It was there every day. That's the only one I've seen on lay.

The 5 14inchers i saw back several years ago says they do reproduce.

Last year saw one about 4ft way back up in Waxahatchee creek north of the Hwy 145 bridge.

I was about that same area years ago in a 10 ft. flat bottom. Saw one about the same way. Thought it was dead. Reached to poke him with a cane pole and he went under and under my boat. Made it rock pretty good. Funny part was the old guy in a boat behind me saw what happened and started hollering "He's coming in the boat...he's coming in the boat". Thought he was too. Big head on that sucker too. Used to count on seeing one over there sunning himself on the bank. Called him ol nub because a big piece of tail was missing. Saw one one night on the bank right next to the ice rink at Pt. Mallard. Friend of mine has a picture of one on the beach area there. Seen several slides on flint creek too.

Here's a kayak fishing video I saw a few weeks ago that shows a bunch of them in Wheeler.


https://youtu.be/W5wAyYd4_4Y

There’s plenty on the tenn River. Limestone creek, flint, Blackwell swamp use to see them pretty regular at those places.. mussel camp even had a few last year

One of my buddy's got his lab eaten down near Roland Cooper park.

Dang it, I’m wanting to go noodling on Lay this year but now I’m having second thoughts.

That’s why I won’t let my dogs swim in the river.

Wheres that?

Found these while bank fishing a portion of Flint Creek in Hartselle last week, hind footprint of a smaller alligator.

I'm trying to train them to learn that jet skiers are just another variety of fast food to add to their diet.

Been in the river since the mid 1970s. A few were released at the urging and arm-twisting of Wheeler NWR manager Tom Atkeson and then-Rep Flippo. Supposedly as "beaver control" and also to see whether they could live in what was believed to be their northernmost range.

They breed here. The refuge had some little ones in the visitors center, many years ago. Most of the gators are in the Limestone Bay area and thereabouts. I've seen them on the south side of the river in some of the sloughs. Was called in the late 2000s at the newspaper one day by a guy who said he saw one in Aldridge Creek up between Mountain Gap and Hobbs. I asked how big and he said at least 4 feet, and it wasn't a log or tire. He was pretty convincing.

Honestly surprised more haven't been found in Paint Rock, Aldridge and Cotaco creeks.