Tourists to Florida fascinated with alligators

For many tourists to Florida,nothing tops seeing a gator.

Alligators "survived everything," said Barbara Schenck, president and chief executive officer of Cocoa Beach-based FunDay  Tours. "They're 'dinosaurs,' and that's part of the fascination."

FunDay Tours offers cruise passengers arriving at Port Canaveral opportunities to view gators, both in captivity at Gatorland in Orlando and in the wild while on airboat rides along the St. Johns River.

"They're excited, they're thrilled" to see a gator for the first time, Schenck said. "It's 'oohs' and 'aahs.' "

But the potential danger of gators became all to real when an alligator fatally attacked a 2-year-old boy Tuesday evening while he was playing in the water at the Seven Seas Lagoon at the Grand Floridian Hotel at Walt Disney World. The boy's family was visiting from Nebraska.

Leo Cross, a Rockledge licensed wildlife trapper, called the toddler’s death “a horrible example of ‘wrong place, wrong time.’ ” The boy's body was recovered Wednesday.

“Gators feed heavily at dawn and dusk, and that’s a heightened time when you do not want to be in the water. That’s when they’re out foraging for food,” Cross said.

“Plus, mating season runs from May through June, and gators are up running around more. Things become more territorial. And with warmer temperatures, they’ve got more energy,” he said. “When temperatures are in the 90s, they’re cruising the banks. They feed along the shoreline in the vegetation. By the time one becomes a nuisance and starts to be aggressive toward humans, it might be too late.” 

Norman Earley, owner of Lone Cabbage Fish Camp, on the St. Johns River along the border of Brevard and Orange counties, said the mystique of gators is a big attraction for his customers.

The Twister Air Boat Ride tours are based at Lone Cabbage, but have a different owner.

Tourists who visit for an airboat ride "just want to go out and see the gators," Earley said. "In reality, most of them have never seen a gator before. People are totally mesmerized by gators."

Not only can they see gators at Lone Cabbage, they also can eat gator tail. Earley sells 200 pounds worth a week, and said it tastes like veal until his cooks add a special breading and seasonings.

And they can buy gator head souvenirs. They retail for $15 to $250  apiece, depending on the size of the gator, and Earley sells 50 to 75 a month.

Gator viewing "is a very popular activity for tourists," said Eric Garvey, executive director of the Space Coast Office of Tourism. "It does fascinate them."

Garvey said tourists coming to the area love to see the gator exhibit at the Brevard Zoo, and "golfers are thrilled when they come down here and see gators" in the ponds that line the golf courses.

Floridians know that gators are common, and to not get too close.

"The tag line is: A fed gator is a dead gator," Schenck said. 

Cross said he typically receives five to 10 calls a day reporting alligators swimming inside retention ponds.

“A gator attack is always possible here in Florida," Cross said. "You can be sure that there’s a gator in almost every body of water in the state of Florida."

Contact Berman at 321-242-3649 or dberman@floridatoday.com. Follow him on Twitter @ByDaveBerman and on Facebook at facebook.com/dave.berman.54

Contact Neale at 321-242-3638, rneale@floridatoday.com or follow @RickNeale1 on Twitter