Incredible swimmers, fast runners, a powerful bite that's designed to kill. If you live in Texas, these dangerous creatures could be closer than you think.

Backyard Terror

For those of us living in central Texas to the northern and western parts of the state, we are used to foxes, spiders, prairie dogs, and the occasional coyote. But there is another animal far more intimidating that lurks further southeast.

The American Alligator has made the Lone Star State its home from Corpus Christi all the way up to the Dallas area. Although gators are primarily thought of as a part of Florida and other marshy state’s fauna, there are a surprising number of them in Texas.

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How many are there?

Out of the 4,105,100 wild alligators residing in the United States, between 400,000 and 500,000 of them are in Texas.

That lands Texas in the number three spot for states with the most alligators in the wild. Florida is number two with 1,300,000 and Louisiana is number one with a whopping 2,000,000 alligators.

The other states that have gators include Georgia, South Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, North Carolina, and even Oklahoma.

Should I be concerned?

While around half a million gators seems like a lot, there isn’t much to be worried about. If you live along the coast where they are most prominent, simply give them their space and don’t go jumping into any infested waters.

In fact, way fewer people have been killed by an alligator in Texas than you might think... More info is coming soon in another article.

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