People in South Carolina Are Baffled by This Orange “Trumpagator”
OutdoorHub Reporters 02.09.17
An alligator in a small South Carolina town is getting all kinds of attention for one bizarre reason: it’s orange.
The gator is reportedly around 4 1/2 feet long, and lives in a pond in Hanahan, South Carolina. The Post and Courier reported on a Facebook post on the Tanner Plantation and Foster Creek Community Facebook page, which was receiving a lot of attention from people speculating how the alligator got its color.
Is it albino or just a #Clemson fan? The case of the strangely orange #alligator spotted in a #Hanahan neighborhood: https://t.co/gq2pOzPdI9 pic.twitter.com/ABtxf5IUYh
— The Post and Courier (@postandcourier) February 9, 2017
Many seemed to catch on, saying it was nothing more than a coat of dry clay, while others, well let’s just say they had some fun with it, dubbing the gator “The Trumpagator.”
Kent A. Vliet, an alligator biologist at the University of Florida, said he does not believe the animal’s color is the result of a genetic abnormality.
“I have no doubt that animal is stained somehow, “Vliet said. “He’s the color of rust.”
Even though the “Trumpagator” is just another alligator, there’s no doubt this Cheeto-colored reptile is striking! Perhaps its just trying to camouflage itself better while it catches some rays in the sun.