One of the best known states when it comes to alligator hunting is Louisiana. The marshes and swamps of this coastal state hold good numbers of the large reptiles, too. Hunters interested in tagging a Louisiana gator have opportunities in the Sportsmen’s Paradise, but not necessarily at the Rockefeller State Wildlife Refuge.
The Rockefeller State Wildlife Refuge will begin the annual nuisance alligator harvest on Wednesday, September 2. During this period, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) will not open the refuge to the public each day until 10 a.m. After 10 a.m., the public will be allowed to enter the refuge and utilize recreational areas until official sunset each day. The delayed openings will be in effect for seven days or until all alligator trappers have utilized their tags for this controlled alligator harvest.
The Rockefeller refuge, spanning 26 miles of coastal Louisiana in Cameron and Vermilion parishes, provides recreational opportunities to fishermen seeking shrimp, redfish, speckled trout, black drum, and largemouth bass, among other species. Alligator hunting is allowed to remove nuisance and excess alligators.
Rockefeller SWR is one of the most biologically diverse wildlife areas in the nation and attracts over 100,000 visitors annually. Located at the terminus of the vast Mississippi Flyway, south Louisiana winters about four million waterfowl annually. The refuge provides high quality wetlands habitat for ducks, geese, shorebirds and wading birds.