A. Species
Scientific name: Alligator mississippiensis
Common name(s): American alligator
Global IUCN Red List Threat Status: Least Concern
B. Location of use
Geographic location(s):
- Louisiana
Country/Region: USA / Louisiana
C. Scale of assessment
Scale of assessment: Sub-national / Sub-region / Sub-State
Name/Details of location: Louisiana State records
D. Timescale of use
Start Year: 1985
End Year: 2015
E. Information about the use
How is the wild species sourced?: Wild species sourced from its natural habitat
Type of use: Extractive
Practice of use: Targeted fishing harvesting/exploiting or collecting wild aquatic resources
Lethal or non-lethal: Lethal
Does this use involve take/extraction of: The whole entire organism
Purpose(s) of end use: Food and feed, Collection/display, Decorative and aesthetic, Recreation, Conservation Management and Principally the use of skins, traded in the leather industry
Motivation of use: Income generation from trade (individual/household/community), Largescale commercial exploitation for trade, Recreational and Population/Area Management
Is this use legal or illegal?: Legal under national law
F. Information about the Users
Which stakeholder(s) does the record primarily focus on?: Local people
G. Information about the sustainability of use
Is there evidence that the use is having an impact on the target species?: Wild species sourced from its natural habitat
Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an ecological perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered sustainable
Details of assessment carried out: This record reports the careful management of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries over the last 30 years.
Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: This study demonstrates that alligators can be harvested and managed as a renewable resource. The study found that the percentages of alligators in the larger size classes (>274 cm) were relatively stable, population size increased, the average size of harvested alligators increased, and hunter success declined only slightly. Furthermore, the institution of the annual harvest did not stimulate illegal activities. The study concludes that alligators can be hunted in a sustainable manner if hunting is conducted after the hatch period and occurs in areas that primarily exclude the harvest of adult females, and strict law enforcement curbs illegal activities that negatively affect populations.
Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an economic perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered sustainable
Details of assessment carried out: This study
Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: Given the ecological sustainability of this alligator population, the authors conclude that the economic opportunity for hunters to participate in a sustainable harvest is also sustainable, as is their recreational enjoyment of this sports hunting. American alligators represent an economically valuable resource that can be successfully managed to sustain healthy wild populations.
Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from a social perspective been recorded?: Yes, considered sustainable
Details of assessment carried out: This study
Brief summary on why the use has been assessed/judged to be sustainable or unsustainable: Given the ecological sustainability of this alligator population, and that this valuable resource that can be successfully managed to sustain healthy wild populations, the recreational enjoyment and tradition of crocodile hunting appears sustainable.
Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from a human health perspective been recorded?: not recorded
Has an assessment (or judgement) of sustainability of the use of the target species from an animal health/welfare perspective been recorded?: not recorded
Recommendations provided in the record to maintain or enhance the sustainability of the use of the target species
The study explains that alligators can be harvested sustainably if protocols that protect breeding females are followed, including a daytime season set after the hatch period and focused hunting in areas that are preferred by adult male and juvenile alligators; Restricted harvest of the total alligator population, as extrapolated from results of annual nest surveys, along with a review of the most recent nests counts (previous 5 years) and consideration of other environmental factors (loss of habitat, drought, flood, tropical storms) can conserve population size. and demography though conservation of slower‐growing, larger size classes (≥274 cm).
Record source
Information about the record source: scientific_pub
Date of publication/issue/production: 2021-01-01T00:00:00+0000
Source Reference(s):
Date of record entry: 2022-12-20