By James Crump
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A large alligator was spotted roaming around a Louisiana neighborhood by residents before being captured by the authorities.
Avarie Gravois, a resident in a neighborhood just off of Grand Point Road near Maura Street in Paulina, told Fox 8 that earlier this week he spotted the alligator that he estimated to be around eight-and-a-half feet long.
The resident said that they saw the alligator calmly walk around the neighborhood for around 45 minutes before officials from the local animal control center came and picked it up.
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A video posted to Facebook by another resident that was shared with Fox 8 showed the alligator walk across the front garden of one of the residences before lying down on the home's porch on the sunny day.
The Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries states on its website that alligators are often seen basking in the sun as they are cold-blooded animals, meaning that their body is regulated by the temperature around them.
There have been several sightings of alligators across southern U.S. states over the last couple of months, as the reptiles thrive in summer conditions but sometimes remain dormant in winter as the cool temperatures slow down their metabolism.
Due to the large numbers of alligators spotted in Louisiana during the summer months, the state has a hunting season that starts around the end of summer to control the population of the animals.
Killing an alligator in Louisiana outside of the permitted hunting season can be punished with a $400 to $950 fine and up to 120 days in prison while taking an alligator without a license carries up to 90 days in jail and a fine of $250 to $500.
In June, a Louisiana pastor, Tony Spell, was cited by police for killing a 6-foot alligator after he uploaded a photo to Instagram of him holding a dead gator he had allegedly fatally shot behind his church.
Spell then shared a video to Instagram showing him holding the animal by the tail, where he said: "We killed this about 6-and-a-half-foot gator in the lake a few minutes ago, so we're officially ready for baptisms tomorrow morning. We'll see you here at the lake."
In a statement on June 11, Louisiana Wild Life and Fisheries said that it was informed of the social media posts and immediately dispatched officers to the scene, where they found the pastor in possession of a dead alligator.
The agency confirmed that it seized the body from Spell and said that the pastor was cited for "harvesting an alligator during a closed season."
Newsweek has contacted the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries for comment.
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