At its meeting in St. Augustine Wednesday, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) adopted a rule change that provides approximately four additional hours of daylight hunting to the state’s recreational alligator hunting season. The change will be in effect for this year’s season: Aug. 15 – Nov. 1.

ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. -- There was an unwelcome intruder at the Conquistador Condominiums this morning, and the deputies who got to the scene first did their best to get it under control until a professional trapper could arrive.

Fortunately for the deputies, the alligator sitting by the road was just in a bad mood, not a hungry one.

They got close to putting a towel over the gator's head, but the gator was having none of it, and hissed loudly enough for them to decide to wait for the licensed trapper to get to the scene.

SLIDESHOW: ANGRY GATOR

The trapper arrived around 3 a.m. and easily got the gator under control.

Some of the most routine habits we engage in on a daily basis can occasionally have some serious, unintended consequences for wildlife, and that is especially so for imperiled species. Beachcombers out for a relaxing walk with the family dog may not recognize the signs that their presence has become a threat to nesting shorebirds and that they should detour around the area.  Homeowners who leave a dirty barbecue grill in the backyard overnight, or unsecured trash or foodstuffs where wildlife can access it, can inadvertently create the catalyst for nuisance wildlife behaviors – with solutions that are palatable to no one.