SILOAM SPRINGS — The hunt for an alligator spotted near Watts, Okla., ended when it was shot and killed earlier this week.

Oklahoma’s Department of Wildlife Conservation had been searching for the reptile since it was spotted in an oxbow lake east of Ballard Creek Bridge, just off the Illinois River.

State game warden Jared Cramer said on June 29 that, after receiving a tip of the gator’s whereabouts, he was able to locate and shoot it June 26.

“I had shot the alligator and was unable to retrieve it at that time,” Cramer said.“Then the next day someone else already had seen it in the water, and they retrieved it out of the water, then I was contacted and came and got it.”

Cramer couldn’t immediately retrieve the gator’s body because it sank.

“I wasn’t even 100 percent sure I had killed it or not at the time,” he said. “It just disappeared.”

Cramer said he received calls almost daily from residents who either spotted the gator or were concerned about it since reports of its existence surfaced in March.

The gator posed a threat because it was close to swimming areas, including the Illinois River, whichsees a lot of public activity in the summer, Cramer explained.

“We received a lot of concerns about the potential threat,” he said. “Now we know it’s not going to be a threat anymore.”

When the carcass was examined, it measured 5 feet 3 inches long.

Though the gator is dead, the Wildlife Department is still investigating how the alligator got to Adair County.

The most likely possibility is someone raised it as a pet and no longer wanted it so it was released, Cramer said.

It is illegal to possess an alligator in Oklahoma. It is also illegal to hunt them. Violators could face state charges.

News, Pages 10 on 07/06/2011