ORLANDO, Fla. — Alligator experts believe the above-average temperatures are leading to increased alligator activity in Florida. 

According to a release from the Daytona Beach Police Department, an alligator bit a man in the leg after he found the gator outside his door.

Gatorland director of media relations, Brandon Fisher, said the animal was probably taking a rest in the wrong place at the wrong time. 

“He just startled the alligator, and the alligator’s reaction naturally is to defend itself when it gets startled,” he said. “Unfortunately, that’s biting.” 

Fisher said alligators spend a significant amount of energy to move around on land, but the 1.5 to 2 million alligators in Florida are getting more lively earlier this season. 

“We’re definitely seeing a rise in the normal activity starting sooner because we’ve had such a warm winter,” Fisher said. 

Fisher explained that heat makes the gators’ biological clock tick, which hastens mating season. 

“These big males have their territories, and when we get into the start of breeding season and mating season there, they get a little bit crazier than normal because [of] their hormone levels. Everything’s through the roof, and they start chasing everything out of their territory,” he said.

Fisher said humans are too large for alligators to see as food. However, they will bite to protect themselves.

He recommends leaving at least a 25-foot buffer between a person and the water’s edge during outdoor activities, refraining from feeding or touching an alligator, facing them at all times and, if pursued, running in a straight line to create space between a person and an alligator. 

Florida residents who need assistance with alligators are asked to call FWC’s Nuisance Alligator Hotline at 866-392-4286.