Before They Were Delisted, American Alligators Were the Original Grizzly Bears

Before They Were Delisted, American Alligators Were the Original Grizzly Bears

This story, “Jaws That Are Real,” appeared in the February 1982 issue of Outdoor Life. The American alligator was delisted from its “threatened” status under the Endangered Species Act in 1987. It was nearly dark. Sixteen-year-old Sharon Holmes dug her toes into the smooth sand of the lake bottom and let the warm water buoy her up. She listened to the frogs peeping in the calm Florida evening. Her father relaxed on shore not far away, enjoying t…