Watch: Cop Wrangles Little Gator

While police officers in Sanford worked to catch an escaped monkey Monday, officers in the Tarpon Springs area had a trespassing alligator on their hands.

It seems a woman noticed the little runaway gator had climbed out of its pond, crossed the street and was trying to take up residence in her yard. A bit taken aback by the squatter, the resident called in police.

When that call was answered by the Tarpon Springs Police Department, the agency knew to send out Cpl. Clyde Thornton. Also known as “Crocodile Dundee,” Thornton made short work of catching the gator and escorting it back to its pond, the agency wrote on Facebook. The critter was estimated to be between 3 and 4 feet in length.

Meanwhile, officers in Sanford were also successful in their efforts to catch an errant monkey named Zeek who broke out of his cage earlier in the day.

See Also:

• Mail-Eating Monkey Caught by Cops

Monkey escapes aren’t so common in Florida, but alligator sightings are. Gators are known to take to the road to stretch their legs this time of year when the temperatures are nice and warm. The state receives so many calls about them it’s set up a hotline to accept nuisance gator reports. That number is 1-866-FWC-GATOR (866-392-4286). In 2013 alone, the state fielded 15,036 nuisance alligator calls, which resulted in the removal of 6,605 creatures.

So, what should folks do if they encounter a gator and how can they avoid running into one in the first place?

“If you see an alligator, appreciate it from a distance,” Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission spokesman Gary Morse told Patch.

Or, if you happen to be in Tarpon Springs, just call Cpl. Thornton.

Photo courtesy of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission