'Trouble the Water'

Matt Eich

Luceo

'Rebel' plants a second bullet in the head of a gator that kept moving after being hauled into the boat while hunting for alligators near Shell Island, Louisiana on September 20, 2009. Each gator is then tagged before being piled in the bottom of the boat. The state of Louisiana is home to the largest alligator population in the United States, estimated to be almost 2 million. Alligators are North America's largest reptiles and are considered a renewable resource in an industry that has thrived in America's deep south for centuries. The alligator farming industry in Louisiana alone annually harvests 140,000-170,000 gators which are valued at over $12,000,000. The recession in the US has tightened the noose on the alligator industry. Hides that were once worth $37 per foot are now only bringing in an average of $11 per foot.

Matt Eich, "'Trouble the Water'," in POYi Archive, Item #43239, http://archive.poy.org/items/show/43239 (accessed November 23, 2024).