PINE BLUFF, Ark. — There it was—nose and eyes—and eventually its entire back sticking out of the floodwaters near Sheppard Island Road.
We took the video to Trey Reid with the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission.
"That's definitely an alligator," said Reid.
Reid is a Pine Bluff native who said he has rarely seen one near the city but confirmed the creature resting in the Arkansas River backwash nonetheless.
"I would have to say that that is a little bit of a needle in the haystack kind of find, even with the floodwaters and with animals being in places where you might not normally see them," Reid said. "It is not common in Arkansas even in the delta to just drive around and stumble upon an alligator in most cases."
"I'd say an alligator is probably one of your least likely animals to encounter in the Pine Bluff area," he said.
Reid said that even though Pine Bluff doesn't have a high-density population like south Louisiana or along the gulf coast, the alligator population in Arkansas is just as prevalent.
"You've got to think that they were in that habitat before the floodwaters came, and they are going to go back to it after the waters recede."
Yes, you may see an alligator in the floodwaters, but according to Reid, they don't want to hurt you if you do see one.
If you see an alligator, just back away. Once the flood water recedes, they will go back into their habitat.