WACO, Texas — Shelbi Todaro was shocked, and rightly so. It’s not a common occurrence for the 25-year-old Waco resident to witness a four-foot alligator swimming around town.

“He kept dipping under and coming back out, but when he swam under the bridge, he was fully out and that was everyone’s favorite video,” Todaro said.

“I spotted him on Saturday night and then posted it on Sunday morning and went about my day and didn’t realize that it was going crazy until I opened it back up,” Todaro continued. 

The mid-November sighting was the second time the prehistoric Texan has made an appearance in the Brazos River this year, prompting the question, how exactly did it get here?

“More likely than not, it’s an animal that has been dumped or illegally released,” Jonathan Warner, alligator program leader for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, said. 

Warner says Texas is “gator-friendly,” home to almost 500,000 reptiles. Nearly all the amphibious animals are located in the southeastern part of the state due to optimal conditions for nesting populations. So, this is indeed a rarity.

“Enjoy it, it’s at awesome sighting and cool area to see one,” Warner said. “Just steer clear. Use common sense. Don’t feed it or walk your pets down by the shoreline at night.”

A sub-adult, Warner says there’s no real threat or plans to trap or move the animal. It likely will travel south as temperatures cool. But not before leaving residents with a hot topic of conversation.

“We don’t have to be afraid of the animals we live with on the planet. We just need to be educated about them,” Todaro said.