A Departure

Normally, we have a lot of fun with animal stories around here. Especially when we can work in the "animal uprising" theme. Today is a little bit of a departure in that there really is a serious message in this story.

IN THE EVERGLADES, Fla. - Crusty's days are numbered. The well-known 8-foot alligator has become so accustomed to people feeding him that his demise is certain. Because state wildlife managers worry all his snacks will make him aggressive, they will have to remove him from a canal along Florida's Alligator Alley in the Everglades and euthanize him.

To keep from having to kill even more alligators, officers with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission launched a three-day undercover sting operation in Broward County on Friday aimed at catching gator feeders in the act.

It's a second-degree misdemeanor punishable by a fine and up to 60 days in jail.

Jeffrey Bush, 43, of Fort Lauderdale, learned the hard way. Officers say they caught him tossing a fish to Crusty on Friday morning.

"I wasn't really trying to feed the dumb animal," Bush said. "I was just throwing stuff at him to get him to move and one of those things happened to be a fish."

Bush will now have to argue his case in court.

"People think that throwing one hot dog in the water, a fish, a piece of bread or an M&M means nothing, but the fact is that act modifies the animal's behavior and now you have a potentially dangerous, fatal situation," said officer Chuck Ehrismann. "They start to see humans as a food source."

Officials estimate there are up to two million alligators in Florida, many living in urban areas that have encroached on their natural habitat. Three people were fatally attacked by alligators in Florida during one week in May.

It really is a problem. People think they are being nice feeding the gators. They are not. The alligators become desensitized to humans and end up having to be destroyed. Alligators can't be relocated because they are highly territorial. So to all the kind-hearted, well-meaning people out there, for the alligator's sake, don't even try to feed them.

It gets them used to using newspapers as bait. Ok, we couldn't resist bringing it up.