A 35-year-old man got more than he bargained for while trying to retrieve a disc golf disc from a pond in Clearwater's Cliff Stephens Park yesterday — he was bitten on the arm by an 11-foot-alligator around 5 p.m. Monday night.
The victim was taken to Mease Countryside Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, and licensed trappers were able to capture both the offender and a second, smaller alligator from the pond. Both gators were or will be euthanized, in keeping with Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission guidelines (said guidelines being that nuisance gators will continue to be nuisance gators no matter where you try to relocate 'em).
While they weren't specifically covered in any of the news stories, it would be interesting to know 1) how much a disc golf disc costs, 2) how long the man has been living in Florida, and 3) what he was thinking.
This article appears in Sep 6-13, 2018.