Nature & Environment

Human remains found inside Louisiana alligator

By T.K. Randall
September 19, 2021 ·  4 comments

Alligators can be deadly, but human fatalities are rare. Image Credit: CC BY-SA 3.0 H. Zell The dangers posed by these four-legged reptiles were brought into sharp focus this week following reports that human remains had been found in the belly of a Louisiana alligator.

The story goes that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - alongside the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries - had captured the creature near the Avery Estates area where a 71-year-old man - Timothy Satterlee Sr - had disappeared after being dragged off by an alligator outside his home.

Measuring 12ft in length, the animal was found to have human remains in its stomach. Efforts are now underway to conclusively identify them as those of Satterlee Sr.

Despite the incident, however, experts have moved to reassure locals that such attacks are rare."People getting killed by alligators is extremely rare," said biologist Adam Rosenblatt.

"A lot of human-alligator conflict occurs when alligators get provoked, both intentionally and unintentionally, or when alligators go after people's pets."

Official statistics show that only around 10 people were killed by alligators in Louisiana since 1999.

For comparison, 12 times as many people were killed by lightning during that same period.

Source: Live Science | Comments (4)

Tags: Alligator