Cajun
Well-known member
Man who trapped alligators locally for 28 years dies at 54 from cancer
By Gerald Ensley
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He caught an average 200 alligators a year for 28 years. He once captured a 13-foot, dog-killing alligator whose chomp was measured at a record 2,980 pounds of bite force - twice that of the most powerful mammal.
North Florida is going to miss Tony Hunter.
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The pioneering alligator trapper died last week at age 54 after a battle with cancer. A memorial service is set for noon Saturday at Celebration Baptist Church.
An admitted one-time alligator poacher, he became one of the state's first certified trappers in 1978 when Florida began an official program for capturing nuisance alligators.
Hunter, 54, was responsible for trapping in Gadsden, Leon, Jefferson and part of Jackson counties, removing alligators threatening people or animals in lakes, parking lots and neighborhoods. Featured in documentaries by U.S., British and Japanese filmmakers, Hunter suffered only one major alligator bite in his career and prided himself on extricating gators with a minimum of violence. He donated hundreds of them to tourist attractions in Alabama and St. Augustine - where one giant alligator is named for him.
"Tony really loved alligators and tried to find homes for many of them," said Florida State professor and alligator researcher Greg Erickson. "He was an absolutely remarkable alligator handler and naturalist."
Born in Tallahassee but raised in Naples, Hunter trapped alligators illegally until 1967, when they were put on the federal endangered-species list. Part of the founding group of state-certified trappers in 1978, he moved to Tallahassee in 1980 and became a frequent lobbyist for alligator-trapping rules and regulations.
He retired in April 2006 after being diagnosed with lung cancer. One of his sons, Michael Hunter, 33, has taken over the trapping business.
"A lot of the equipment and techniques of this business were pioneered by a handful of people - and he was one of those," the son said. "He also played a big part in the politics of the business. He was a pioneer."
Thought some of ya'll might want to know. Thoughts and prayers to his family. Cajun
By Gerald Ensley
DEMOCRAT SENIOR WRITER Print Email to a friend Subscribe
He caught an average 200 alligators a year for 28 years. He once captured a 13-foot, dog-killing alligator whose chomp was measured at a record 2,980 pounds of bite force - twice that of the most powerful mammal.
North Florida is going to miss Tony Hunter.
ADVERTISEMENT
The pioneering alligator trapper died last week at age 54 after a battle with cancer. A memorial service is set for noon Saturday at Celebration Baptist Church.
An admitted one-time alligator poacher, he became one of the state's first certified trappers in 1978 when Florida began an official program for capturing nuisance alligators.
Hunter, 54, was responsible for trapping in Gadsden, Leon, Jefferson and part of Jackson counties, removing alligators threatening people or animals in lakes, parking lots and neighborhoods. Featured in documentaries by U.S., British and Japanese filmmakers, Hunter suffered only one major alligator bite in his career and prided himself on extricating gators with a minimum of violence. He donated hundreds of them to tourist attractions in Alabama and St. Augustine - where one giant alligator is named for him.
"Tony really loved alligators and tried to find homes for many of them," said Florida State professor and alligator researcher Greg Erickson. "He was an absolutely remarkable alligator handler and naturalist."
Born in Tallahassee but raised in Naples, Hunter trapped alligators illegally until 1967, when they were put on the federal endangered-species list. Part of the founding group of state-certified trappers in 1978, he moved to Tallahassee in 1980 and became a frequent lobbyist for alligator-trapping rules and regulations.
He retired in April 2006 after being diagnosed with lung cancer. One of his sons, Michael Hunter, 33, has taken over the trapping business.
"A lot of the equipment and techniques of this business were pioneered by a handful of people - and he was one of those," the son said. "He also played a big part in the politics of the business. He was a pioneer."
Thought some of ya'll might want to know. Thoughts and prayers to his family. Cajun