Alligators in Jamaica Beach Marsh?

[Floundapounda122]

Has anyone seen any gators in the marsh by Jamaica Beach? On both sides? It looks like a good place for them to be....

[macjank7]

Oh yeah, Troy Landry and I set gator lines all along both sides. We filled all our tags there last year. CHOOT EM'mm

[saltykat]

I hooked a 10 footer on a topwater last week jk anything is possible but I've never seen one there. With all the freshwater we had I'm sure there are a few in the bays

[EZ-E]

no gators .... but there can be some good size bull sharks in the area.

[karstopo]

Are there alligators on Galveston Island? Salt lake,in Salt bayou has a resident gator, Bastrop bayou has them around clay banks.

[TDD]

there are some large gator gar but I personally haven't seen an alligator on the south shore of the bay in 35 years of living on the Island ... you will find them on the north shore of the bay around fresh water drainage into the bay.

[gonefishin]

I haven't seen any there. Plenty of good sized sharks though. I have seen them in Christmas Bay. Specifically, I remember a few years ago, a lady coming back to her truck at Ernies and a little gator was snoozing underneath.

[Wadefish69]

One was caught in the surf on west beach few years ago. Game Wardens captured and released it. Care to guess where? If there is one there are more. I think most large bodies of water do have them, just some areas have larger populations.

[karstopo]

http://tracker.cci.fsu.edu/alligator/about/where/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The above says alligator can live in brackish waters, but can't handle salt water for more than brief periods. It seems like that if a gator crossed west bay and found a nice stock pond on Galveston island that it would be fine there. No too sure they can handle West bay for most of the time, might be too salty.

I've been in a lot of the Brazoria county marshes and I've only seen them around Salt Bayou in Salt Lake and around the Clay Banks area of Bastrop Bayou. But they are prone to walking across land and swimming to new territory. My parents live on a lake and periodically, gator scome in, someone comes and gets them, but eventually more find there way there again.

[gonefishin]

Down at Lamar, on the beach road going toward the Big Tree, is a freshwater pond that usually houses a fairly large resident gator (didn't see him last time we were there). We have seen him on several occasions cross the road into St. Charles Bay. Probably feeding on the Big Reds up in the shallows. We warned a female jogger once that a big 10 footer was walking down the road and she said that, " he is always there and doesn't bother anyone" . anyway she kept jogging that direction, I would of run as fast as I could in the opposite direction

Galveston Island State Park has some freshwater ponds on the bayside, so there could be alligators in those ponds that may venture into the marsh on occasion.

[Yaklash]

Oh yeah, Troy Landry and I set gator lines all along both sides. We filled all our tags there last year. CHOOT EM'mm

Think we just got an idea of where somebody doesn't want to see any more traffic?

But seriously, I have waded, boated and camped in that area over the last 35+ years and I have never seen an alligator.

I have seen them in the Anahuac NWR but not East Bay, from Double Bayou to the Trinity mouth all the way around to Jack's pocket (& not just a few), I have seen them in or near Bastrop, Chocolate and Drum bays, around the ICW along East & West Matagorda Bays, in Lavaca Bay and I have seen them on the west (Aransas NWR) shoreline and north end of San Antonio Bay. St Charles Bay is sick with them.

[spektakler]

I did see a 4 footer in the back of Pierce marsh next to the diversionary canal. but that was 8-10 years ago after a looooong deluge of rain that year.

[Fargus]

There's a couple of small lakes just west of the GISP entrance on the north side of 3005 that had one in it several years ago.

[B.lullo]

To answer the original question, yes, there's a gator (or two) on the S. shoreline of west bay. Last summer I walked up on a 7-8' gator while gigging around the Jamaica Beach area. Imagine the feeling when it's pitch dark, your only weapon is a 5' lightweight gig and your up past your ankles in mud. after the brief stare down with less than 15' separating us it was an easy decision to get outta there and go finish off our limits somewhere else

[MarshMikee]

I have seen them in the Anahuac NWR but not East Bay, from Double Bayou to the Trinity mouth all the way around to Jack's pocket (& not just a few), I have seen them in or near Bastrop, Chocolate and Drum bays, around the ICW along East & West Matagorda Bays, in Lavaca Bay and I have seen them on the west (Aransas NWR) shoreline and north end of San Antonio Bay. St Charles Bay is sick with them.

I used to commercial fish, with nets, back when it was legal, in and around the north end of Trinity and Jacks pocket areas. At night, with a light, there are plenty of gators looking back at you. There were some of the biggest I have seen in that area actually. In the bayou, between gou hole and the bay, we saw plenty there too.

After both Rita and Ike, we saw plenty of gators walking on the beach in SW LA. For months...... not just right after the storm.

If you are really worried about it, go at night, with a good light. Five minutes shining around, will tell you quick, if there is any gator to be found where you are.

[Buzz13]

I've fished Jamaica Beach West Bay area regularly for about 7 years now and I've never seen a gator. This past Saturday I did see a yote swim across the cove on the Indian Beach side. He swam 200 yards across to the Idian side.