‘Tis the season — for alligator harvesting in the Sunshine State.
Florida’s annual alligator hunt will be coming to lakes, marshes, rivers, and creeks near you, starting Wednesday.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission oversees the six-week hunting extravaganza and has been doing so since 1988.
This year, the FWC reported that it received more than 15,800 applications for about 6,200 limited entry permits. Those permits were randomly drawn in June.
In July and August, the agency also opened up an additional 1,300 county-wide permits. Each permit allows its holder to harvest two alligators. That means as many as 15,000 alligators could be harvested.
According to the FWC, Florida has more than 1.3 million alligators living in its waters.
The season runs from 5 p.m. Wednesday until 10 a.m. Nov. 1. Legal hunting hours statewide are 5 p.m.-10 a.m. The state sold out of its permits for the 11th straight year.
Permits cost a Florida resident $272, but for out-of-state hunters it will cost a pretty penny -- $1,022, to be exact. Out-of-state hunters must also have a Florida hunting license.
Here are some of the biggest gators captured in Florida from previous years:
Sept. 10, 2014: 10-foot gator caught near Venice pier
Sept. 2, 2013: 13-foot gator caught, weighs 723.5 pounds
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