When you think of alligators and gator hunting you often think of South Louisiana or the southern part of our state. Alligators are more prevalent in Central and South Mississippi, but are often found in Northeast Mississippi. The Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway is a favored location for gator hunters in our area. Typically alligators avoid humans and human activity, but they are often found in the backwaters, marshes and old river runs along the waterway. They even occasionally find themselves in areas such as; farm ponds, road ditches, highways, yards and other areas. It is illegal and very dangerous for the public to capture and remove or kill an alligator without a special permit from the Mississippi Department of Wildlife Fisheries and Parks.

Alligator Public Water Season opens on the last Friday in August each year. Permits for alligator hunting are by Special Permit only.

Public Water Season: 12:00 Noon August 28 until 12:00 Noon September 7, 2020
2020

There were a total of 960 permits available within seven hunting zones across the state for the 10-day 2020 season. Applicants applied for the permits in June. Permit holders may harvest 2 alligators over 4 feet long, only one of which may exceed 7 feet long.

Capture Methods per the Mississippi 2020 Hunting Guide:
The use of bait and baited hook sets is illegal in Mississippi. All alligators must first be captured and controlled by a restraining line before being dispatched. Restrained is defined as having a noose or snare attached to the neck or at least one leg in a manner in which the alligator is controlled. Shooting at or attempting to dispatch an alligator that is not restrained may result in the loss and needless waste of the animal. Capture methods are dictated by the hunter’s proficiency with equipment and the amount of obstacles in the water in which the alligator is located. For instance, all legal methods may be applicable for an alligator located in basically open water with few underwater or surface obstacles. However, capture methods should be more selective for an alligator located near dense vegetation, logs, stumps, or man-made structures such as piers or boat houses. Preferred methods in these instances may be a harpoon with attached cable and buoy or a hand or pole snare, which hold the alligator more securely and may be able to withstand more substantial resistance. Capture pref- erence is strictly left up to the hunter.
Legal methods of capture are:
• Snatch Hooks (hand thrown or rod/reel)
• Harpoon (with attached line and/or buoy)
• Snare (hand or pole type)
• Bowfishingequipment(with attached line and/or buoy)

Dispatching Techniques per the Mississippi 2020 Alligator Hunting Guide:
Alligators may only be dispatched with a shotgun with shot size no larger than #6 shot (ex. 6, 7, 7.5, 8, and 9 shot only) or with a bangstick chambered in .38 caliber or larger. All shotguns or bangsticks must remain cased and unloaded until the alligator is restrained. No alligator may be dispatched until it is restrained by a noose or snare around the neck or leg so that the alligator is controlled.
Once the alligator has been restrained, it may be dispatched with legal equipment. All gators taken must be reported to Mississippi Department of Wildlife Fisheries and Parks.