Alligator Attack in Florida Everglades Sees Man Airlifted to Hospital

A man has been airlifted out of the Everglades after suffering what is believed to be an alligator bite.

Emergency services responded to the incident that occurred near the entrance to the Everglades National Park on Sunday afternoon, local news outlet WSVN reported.

The man’s condition is still unknown as of Monday morning, but he remains in hospital after being transported to the Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson South Medical Center in Miami.

While local reports are saying an alligator was responsible for the attack, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission released a statement to WSVN saying they could not confirm that an alligator was involved, however they did receive reports of a “crocodile incident in Homestead yesterday.”

The state of Florida overall is home to around 1.3 million alligators. Attacks by the reptiles remain rare, but due to the abundance of them in the state they can sometimes occur. They can be found all over the state in swamps and other waterways. The Everglades is prime alligator habitat meaning they are all over the national park and swamp. They are highly important to its ecosystem, meaning officials do not like it when the species is disrupted.

It is not clear how the man came to be bitten. The National Park Service recommends staying a “safe distance” from the shoreline, from around 15 to 20 feet, as alligators and crocodiles often lurk here.

“Prevent small children and pets from approaching shorelines or basking alligators or crocodiles,” the park service says on its website.

Alligators will usually only attack if they feel provoked or threatened. They are typically more active in the warmer months from spring to summer meaning conflicts can increase during this time.

There have been eight unprovoked alligator bites in Florida over the last decade, information on the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s website states. Crocodile attacks are even rarer.

Alligators are fierce predators meaning when bites do occur, they can be serious depending on the depth of the bite. However, the commission states that the likelihood of someone being seriously injured during an incident is one in 3.1 million.

When an attack does occur, trappers from the commission will often be called to deem whether alligators have proved to be a nuisance or not.

If the alligator has shown aggression towards people, then often it will be a cause for concern and sometimes euthanized..

Not all alligators are deemed a nuisance. A nuisance alligator is over 4 feet long and repeatedly poses a threat to humans.