Watching Swamp People... So, what's the annual payout for a good gator hunter? I know it depends on tag quantity, but what's an average?

I doubt many gator hunters frequent texags to answer.

But I heard that Troy from Swamp People does pretty well (I have no idea what kind of $ that means) because he also owns a seafood distribution company, or something like that.

If you're not getting rich off a hit TV show, I'd imagine you'd be lucky to make $30k/year based upon the sketchy economics they mention on the show. Of course, they can work another job the rest of the year too. Those people appear to live like sh*t.

Considering their season is only like a month long, I'm sure they all do something else the rest of the year.

Saw a breakdown that if you got 200 tags, and if you you averaged 8 footers in good condition, you would clear just over $18,000. Landy owns a gas station and distributes crawdads for the locals (and probably make a killing on the outdoor tradeshow circuit). Most of the others dabble crawfish or shrimping. The one guy is an MMA fighter.

Junior and especially his son, are award winning chemists.---kidding, but it wouldn't shock me.

Thanks Ursus. That is the kind of info I was looking for. It sure sounds low to me. If my math is right that is only $90 for an eight footer. I wonder if the market varies much each year and if the buyers pay the same per foot rate for the bigger ones?

I'd have to dig it up, but I do know it varies a lot from year to year.

One of the guys from last year built custom boats. That flat bottom work boat he made was nice.

I wish i had the welder and skills to make my own =(

Who has a shop in dallas??

My understanding is that the price/ft thing is not linear.

I worked on JD Murphree WMA, where TPWD's alligator program was managed, back in the 90s. From what I remember the cost per foot for a 7' to 9' gator dropped from $90-$100 / ft when the black market was really going to a range of $10-$20 / ft. The major factor was allowing licensed alligator farmers to collect eggs and start producing them legally, which killed the black market. Of course requiring CITES tags to legally sell any meat or leather went hand-in-hand with the farming program.

If the price is still what it was back in the late 90s, it would be tough making a living off alligators unless you were a farmer or one of the nuisance gator contractors in an area with a lot of human / alligator interaction.

The story of the American alligator recovery is one of the major wildlife mgmt success stories. It brought the gator back from near extinction, seriously curtailed poaching and illegal trade, and the populations rebounded in less than 30 years to the point that hunting is viable. Some folks in Florida might argue it was too successful.

If you haven't been on a gator hunt, I would encourage you to put in for the TPWD public hunts. The youth hunts are really cool because the biologists will work hard to be sure every kid gets a gator.

[This message has been edited by tamc91 (edited 4/14/2012 9:45p).]