Gator In The Hood

Is this gator recently dropped in the lake? How can it survive the cold winter weather?

He's still evading capture....

[quote]Alligator in Humboldt Park Lagoon evading capture for third day as park crews put up fences...People flocked to the West Side park to try to see the alligator, with Chicago Park District workers putting up snow fencing around the lagoon Thursday to keep onlookers away from the water. Thursday morning, about 20 people were gathered by about 9 a.m., looking for the alligator, which hadn’t been sighted since about 2 a.m.

He's still evading capture....

[quote]Alligator in Humboldt Park Lagoon evading capture for third day as park crews put up fences...People flocked to the West Side park to try to see the alligator, with Chicago Park District workers putting up snow fencing around the lagoon Thursday to keep onlookers away from the water. Thursday morning, about 20 people were gathered by about 9 a.m., looking for the alligator, which hadn’t been sighted since about 2 a.m.

[quote]Is this gator recently dropped in the lake? How can it survive the cold winter weather?

They won't know till it's captured. Alligators are more weather hearty than all other crocodilians.

Naturally they can be found as far north as Norfolk, VA and Memphis, TN (yes they can swim up the Mississippi).

In warmer weather they have been known to swim up as far North as New Jersey and Peoria, IL

In contrast the American Crocodile cannot live further north of the Everglades or they die. Even in the Everglades they are smaller and rare, than elsewhere as temperatures drop too low for most of them.

Now they're holding a contest to name it. Good grief

It's all fun and games until it runs off with someone's poodle.

4-5 feet is not that big. The poodle has a chance.

Those creatures scare the hell out of me. Especially when you happen upon one without expecting it. You couldn't pay me enough to swim in a lake in Florida. Besides the brain eating amoebas that creep into your ears, I am not leaving this earth being consumed by one of those ugly motherfuckers.

Three gators have been captured in Pittsburgh along the Monongahela this year. What's wrong with people? Gators would never survive winters in the north.

I think it escaped from pornographers.

R9

There has been massive flooding on the Mississippi this year. All the feeder rivers are flooding too.

I know alligators can swim up the rivers. Maybe the flooding has confused them

They're moving North at 25 miles per. year, and as someone mentioned above , they've already entered Virginia. It won't be too long before they'll be swimming in the Potomac and sunning themselves on the steps of the Watergate in DC.

One interesting thing about Alligators is that the M/F ratio of their offspring depends on temperature. Eggs laid in warm conditions tend to be male, and eggs laid in cooler conditions tend to be female. Ponder that, if an alligator is moving into territory that's not optimal (i.e., too cold) nature gives it an edge by favoring females.

Now they are saying that it may be a caiman not an alligator.

It's a discarded pet.

The poor thing will be able to survive the summer but will eventually freeze come winter.

r14

It'll be caught long before then. Celebrities are already racing to the cause. Oprah has already offered to eat it Michelle Obama offered to have it made into shoes, while Jussie has already claimed it racially attacked him.

^^^^^ Funny because it's kinda true ^^^^

Sadly from the pictures the poor ting is smaller than the duck.

Maybe a nice wallet or belt.

[quote]He's still evading capture....

Chicagoans are not known for liking authority figures.

I thought we were calling the alligator Chance the Snapper. I'm gonna go tomorrow to see if I can get a glimpse of it.

They have nicknamed him Chance the Snapper. He's making fools out of everyone.

Next week the highs in Chicago are supposed to be in the mid 90s approaching 100ºF, perfect weather for him. He won't even have to bask in the sun to warm up.

What about Leprechauns??

Gator day 7 / Chicago officials stumped at how to catch alligator who apparently is delighting crowds and making a fool out of people trying to catch him. With temperatures this week in the mid 90s to highs of 100ºF expected, Chance the Snapper (as he's now called) has all the homefield advantages

This is Lightfoot's biggest crisis since Flick the Bean was grafit'od by vandals!

"Is this gator thing for real?" - Lori Lightfoot, to the press upon returning from NYC scissor session with the De Blasios.

They are indigenous to the region. Back in the 19th C when sewers were just pipes in the ground, alligators would go in them during winter tp stay warm, sometimes suprising people by coming out of the drains, and I think that was before they were kept as pets.

the ducks don't seem to care, so either he doesn't know how to hunt, or the ducks don't recognize him as a predator.

we have herons in the city the ducks put up a fit whenever one goes anywhere near the water.

Chicago has closed half of (Humboldt) the park and hired an alligator expert from Florida to catch him.

"we really don't know what to do," said the mayor, "he keeps pointing at us and laughing."

With all the people shooting up chicago, no one can hit this mutha?

With all the people shooting up chicago, no one can hit this mutha?

In June 2008, a five-foot alligator was found in the Chicago River. A month later, a slightly smaller gator was found and trapped in Plainfield's Lake Renwick. That gator, lured into a humane trap with some store-bought chicken, was believed to be someone's illegally acquired pet and didn't appear afraid to approach humans.

In 2010, another alligator was found in the Chicago River, this time in the north branch.

More recently last October, a kayaker found a four-foot-long gator swimming in Lake Michigan's Waukegan Harbor. The gator was swimming through the chilly water with its mouth bound shut with rubber bands. Initially met with skepticism, the kayaker took a video for proof and called 911.

We have an accuracy issue in the city r27

They thing in the pond is a Cayman, not an alligator.

You can tell by the head shape.

And, no, they are not native at all. Caymans are from South America and are brought here for the pet trade.

Caiman. Reptile, not the islands.

They better catch it soon or this will be happening soon enough☺

They better catch it soon or this will be happening soon enough☺

[quote]They thing in the pond is a Cayman, not an alligator. You can tell by the head shape.

RACIST!!!

R1 is an idiot. We are about to approach 100° this week.

It's CAIMAN

Caymans are Islands

Whatever it is, it is making a fool outta everyone.

Like Aaron Schock with his hands in a jockstrap.....the gator has been CAUGHT

r38

Poor guy, I hope he took a few of them down with him.

[quote]o what happens next, now that the creature has been captured?

chicago park official said "Well Ya-UM"

[quote]So what happens next, now that the creature has been captured?

He goes on tour as a backup dancer for Beyoncé, Rose.

And how do they know it’s a him?!!!!!!

Maybe he IDENTIFIES as a female gator!!

This is literal VIOLENCE against the Trans and green community. This has to STOP!!!!1!!111!!!!one!!

Thank you r36.

Please see r31.

[quote] Caymans are from South America and are brought here for the pet trade

No, they are not, Caymans are from the Caribbean

That gator threw the first rock at Stonewall!

He's a Queen with his little bow on his head.

Caimans are native to Central and South America.

Google and Wiki are tools of knowledge . You should explore them r45.

^You sure are invested in the importance of your views. Nobody cares what you think, honey.

He’s always pompous, r49.

facts are no views.

r48

Stop being a dumbass

Caymans are people who live on the Cayman Islands and they are in the Caribbean.

How many times do you need to be told you're wrong.

r47

He's got the same eyes as Burke Ramsey

Florida man catches gator and asks to attend Cub-Reds game at Wrigley Field.

Throws out the first pitch.

R54

he throws like a girl

He's an odd man. I saw the Florida croc man on the channel 9 morning show flipping the switch on Buckingham Fountain for the day. And he was coherent but something seemed off.

Reminder, gentlefuckos: autocorrect gives you cayenne.

It’s a central merican cayenne.

Proceed

Very photogenic, even knows to smile for the cameras

r58

It looks like he's missing all his teeth. (he's not, look closer). But I was going to start a GoFundMe to buy him some dentures.

r56

Well you could start with his ridiculous beard and continue to list his flaws for a few days.

Chance will be enjoying a 5-star resort designed specifically for similar creatures.

r61

Although this has a happy ending for this cute little guy, I fear now every moron will be dumping their pet in Humboldt Park when they don't want them.

It’s better for them than dropping them 11 stories, r62.

R63 Till the freeze and starve in winter or bite some kids foot off.

Seriously dumping exotic pets is a worldwide problem

I loved this movie as a kid.

Maybe it was somebody's pet.

He's really cute

R67, Adorbs especially with that bright red plaid bow on/near his head. Wrapped up like a Christmas (in July) present. He even "smiled" for the camera.

[quote]Seriously dumping exotic pets is a worldwide problem

And that's why the Everglades has Burmese pythons.

On the lighter side, escaped monk parakeets have established colonies in Texas.

Betty White could have caught it

We have them tropical birds in Chicago as well. I don't understand how they survive the brutal winters but they do.

r66 I think it's 99.9% chance it was being kept as a pet.

But they now have Rheas in Germany and Hippos in Colombia, that have established stabled populations, because of releases.

As for the parrots in Chicago, birds are not as fragile as you'd think. Unless it's like the Arctic extremes, birds don't have trouble in cold weather. The big problem is finding food. They have high metabolism. But as long as a bird can find enough food, they just find a small nook and fluff their feathers up and stay warm. It's really about the food, not the heat/cold. Birds migrate for this reason, because of the huge abundance of insects up north. Even birds that normally don't eat insects generally feed them to their babies which need protein.

[quote]Very photogenic, even knows to smile for the cameras

Oh, great. Just what we need, another future Instahoe!

Has Katie Couric interviewed him yet?

Another Gator just captured in Pittsburgh. It's our 4th this summer.

But are they as cute as this one?

No! THAT’S why we’re not hearing about it. Biased media.

Cute? I wonder if the ducks he ate felt the same way

Free foie gras is hard to resist.

Humboldt Park, where the alligator was dumped is a hotbed of drugs and prostitution. I bet he was used to guard some thug's stash.

R80, do you think maybe he stole some meth. That would explain his teeth.

R76, R77, Were the other caught gators adorned with pretty bows to enhance their looks? Or did the captors create a more original style? Either way I hope the creatures ended up in a zoo or a 5-star gator resort instead of as a meal and accessories.

Tragically, you’re too late with your advice, r32. That happened this weekend.

What fascinating creatures they are!

I wish they could catch the jerk who put him in the pond and dumped him. He should have to foot the bill for the cost of catching him.

I hear he converted to Islam and now is a gharial

One year later Chance is doing well and as typical turned into a ghetto bulley even.

[quote]People are still asking about him nonstop. … There’s so much love for the little fella, but he’s not exactly a little fella anymore...The farm recently had to move Chance to his own pen after he started biting his “roommates” at feeding time. Robb said Chance had gotten much bigger than the other gators in his pen and was trying to show them who’s boss.

He still looks like he needs dentures.