Gator Spotted by Several Motorists Scurries Off After Being Hit

Several folks driving on FM 2145 between La Grange and Nechanitz Monday morning spotted an alligator on the road.

Pct. 1 Commissioner Jason McBroom shared a video of the alligator that some of his road and bridge workers took after seeing it on the highway.

“It wasn’t a small one,” McBroom said.

A few minutes later, Allan Minarcik stopped and took a photo of the alligator as it crossed the highway.

Game Warden Calvin Harbaugh with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) received a call Monday morning from a motorist who accidentally ran it over. Harbaugh said the motorist thought it was a blown-out tire. The motorist tried to straddle it but ran over the nose and tail.

“He said there was some blood on the head but it was still alive,” Harbaugh said.

Harbaugh responded to the location but could not find the alligator.

“It’s possible that it’s still alive, or it could have crawled off and died,” Harbaugh said.

An initial report on Facebook by the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office stated that TPWD relocated the alligator, which news outlets in Austin also reported. However, Harbaugh said he never found the gator and did not relocate it.

“We do have alligators in the County, but a lot of people don’t see them,” Harbaugh added. “You’ll see them in times like this, when we get a lot of rain. You’ll also see them when it gets really dry. They’ll move from one stock tank to another if the tank dries up. If there’s a lot of food where they’re at, they’ll usually stay where they’re at. Some times of the year, they’ll move around. It’s not unusual. But you don’t normally see them on the road.”

Harbaugh estimated the alligator was about five feet long based on the video he saw.

“A five-footer is not a big one, but it’s not a baby, either,” he said. “It was a decent size.”

TPWD Wildlife Biologist Laura Sherrod said Fayette County lies on the edge of the natural range for alligators.

“We’re kind of in that area where every now and then they show up,” Sherrod said. “In general, this is not really their typical habitat. A few years back, there was one in the Colorado River that made it almost to Austin. It’s not the normal thing to see around here.”

Speaking of reptiles, motorists have probably noticed all the turtles crossing the roads lately. Sherrod said this time of year is the nesting season for land turtles.