Hunters Invited to Kill Alligators in Florida Everglades Nature Preserve
The News
On Friday, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service will open a National Wildlife Refuge to nighttime alligator hunting. The Animal Rights Foundation of Florida (ARFF) which will protest the hunt at the park entrance, said “Refuges should be places where animals are protected from harm and not hunted for fun or profit.” Because guns are prohibited, hunters will be required to “hook or ensnare the alligators” and then kill them with a “pole that shoots a shotgun shell or bullet into the alligator’s brain.” This method, ARFF says, “often leaves them conscious and suffering for a long time before they die.”
Your Turn
Their prehistoric looks and reputation for being dangerous make alligators a target not only for trophy hunters who want to kill them but also for TV personalities who want to wrestle them. But alligators don’t want to die, and they don’t want to wrestle; they just want to be left alone, like every other wild animal. Do people who watch alligator wrestling believe that the animals are willing participants? Learn more about sport hunting and see what you can do.
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