You Know You Live in Florida When…
Here’s an advertisement from our local paper today! I LOVE it! So…. if you’re into this kind of thing, here’s a job for you! 
I cut it out to keep as a Jacksonville memento.
-There are LOTS of gators in Florida. One site estimates that there are approximately 1.25 billion gators living in Florida (http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_alligators_in_Florida). Another claims that there around a million (http://www.floridaadventuring.com/florida-alligator.html). Either way, that’s a lot of gator!
-The family Alligatoridae first appeared about 35 million years ago. They’re not going anywhere any time soon (http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/uw230).
-Because of Florida’s booming population growth, people and alligators are constantly forced to cross paths, increasing the chances of conflict (http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/uw230).
-Adult Florida alligators are usually 6 to 12 feet long. The largest recorded Florida alligator measured 17 feet 5 inches (http://www.floridaadventuring.com/florida-alligator.html).
-Alligators can run up to 30 mph
-Gators are very dangerous, especially to pets and small children. Stories like this one pop up too frequently: “Gator Kills Dalmatian at Jacksonville’s Hanna Park:” http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/crime/2009-08-11/story/gator_kills_dalmatian_at_jacksonvilles_hanna_park
-Gators do not make good pets, although there is a market for them and unintelligent people keep buying them and getting surprised when the gators get large and dangerous. “Men Caught with 260 Baby Alligators:” http://www.news4jax.com/news/29209214/detail.html
-If you spot any nuisance gators, call the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission at (866) 392-4286 (FWC-GATR). Read more at Jacksonville.com: http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2009-08-16/story/avoiding_alligator_attacks_is_more_about_common_sense#ixzz1ZdeFzMIv
Last Fact: I’m not going to miss the alligators when we move!
