Most Floridians (and Southerners) know the rules of engagement when it comes to alligators. You can get close-ish, but never get close to the point that the gator feels threatened. If you get too close to an apex predator things are going to get serious in a hurry, and that’s exactly what happened for Ben Boukari Jr. at Paynes Prairie in Gainesville, Florida. He got too close and the gator charged him, causing him to freak out and take shelter.
Ben shared a video of the incident on his Facebook page back on June 17th. If the YouTube video below isn’t loading for you then you can access it directly on Facebook here. Ben thought the incident was over when the alligator retreated into the pond (1:24), but he was wrong.
The gator charges him again at 1:42. Just a quick reminder of who’s actually in charge out there in the wild:
I’m proud to say that I’ve never been attacked by an alligator. As a born and raised Floridian who grew up in the Boy Scouts, I’ve spent as much time around gators as anyone that doesn’t work in the gator wrasslin’ industry. As long as you give these awesome creatures their space they don’t attack. This guy should’ve known he was getting way too close, but I doubt he’ll make that same mistake again.
(h/t WPBF)