Alabama

Alabama’s alligators are thickest in the Mobile-Tensaw Delta, one of the largest river delta systems in the country, where the Alabama and Tombigbee rivers spread into a maze of sloughs and backwater before reaching Mobile Bay. From there, the range runs along the Gulf Coast counties and up the major river systems, thinning out the further north you go, though sightings do reach as far as the Black Belt in most years.

Five Rivers Delta Resource Center, a free visitor center on the edge of the delta, has a boardwalk running out over the marsh where gators are a common sight in warmer months, and you can rent a kayak there for a closer look at the channels. Gulf State Park, better known for its beach, has freshwater lakes and marsh behind the dunes that hold gators year-round, most visible from the Nature Center trails around Lake Shelby.

The state’s population is stable enough that Alabama runs a limited, permit-based hunting season most years, which only happens where wildlife managers are confident the population can support it. That’s a useful signal: this isn’t a rare or fragile population, it’s a well-established one.

Spring through fall is the active season, with gators basking on banks and logs during the cooler parts of the day. Stay back at least 30 feet, never feed a gator (illegal here and the single biggest reason gators lose their fear of people), and keep dogs leashed near the water’s edge, since a lot of gator-pet incidents start with an unsupervised dog at a lake or canal.