Louisiana D.W.F. Extends East Zone Alligator Season through Oct. 4 Due to Impacts from Hurricane Isaac

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries 09.18.12

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) announced today the extension of the East Zone 2012 Wild Alligator Harvest Season through Thursday, Oct. 4.

LDWF Secretary Robert Barham approved the extension in accordance with the provisions of R.S. 49:953B of the Administrative Procedure Act and LAC 76:V.701.A.7.a.i.

LDWF had delayed the scheduled opening of East Zone alligator hunting from Aug. 29 until Sept. 1 due to the approach of Tropical Storm Isaac, which reached hurricane strength before landfall.

The storms impacts included flooding and displacement of residents, and inundation of alligator habitat in coastal wetlands. For these reasons, many alligator hunters in southeastern Louisiana were delayed in their efforts to begin hunting Sept. 1 and need additional time to complete their alligator harvest activities. The East Zone is now scheduled to close on the same day as the West Zone, which began as scheduled on Sept. 5.

Alligators taken from the wild may be removed from hook and line, and other legal capture devices, only during daylight hours between official sunrise and official sunset. Hunters are reminded to coordinate their harvest activity with their local alligator buyer or processor as they may have also been affected by the hurricane.

For more information contact Noel Kinler 337-373-0032 or nkinler@wlf.la.gov.

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries – Enforcement Division(LDWF) is the fish & game regulatory agency of Louisiana. It has jurisdictionanywhere in the state, and in state territorial waters. The agency enforces both state and federal laws dealing with hunting, fishing, and boating safety. The agency also enforces criminal laws in rural areas including DWI enforcement both on highways and waterways. Most of the Department’s Wildlife Agents also carry Federal law enforcement commissions issued from the United States Department of the Interior - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and United States Department of Commerce - U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). These federal commissions allow these state officers to enforce federal migratory waterfowl laws and federal marine fisheries laws in state and federal waters off the coast of Louisiana. Besides their traditional role as a “game warden”, Louisiana Wildlife Enforcement Agents also have a number of other responsibilities, including conducting board of health inspections on some portions of the state’s commercial fishing industry. Agents are trained in and conduct numerous search and rescue operations, both in remote land areas and on the state’s waterways. Agents ensure that hunters, anglers, boaters, dealers, breeders, farmers, and transporters are in compliance with regulations governing equipment, quotas, licenses, and registrations. Agents also assist other State departments and law enforcement agencies in the coordination of educational and professional endeavors, as well as national and state emergency alerts by the Federal Office of Emergency Preparedness. In addition, agents perform search and rescue missions alone or in conjunction with other local, state, and federal agencies.