A working group through the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, which includes states with gator populations, has put together a website called GatorWise.org for people who want to know more.
Close
Cole Poplin, with Renegade Bowfishing, measures an alligator on the ground after returning with hunters from hunting on the Combahee River at Steel Bridge Boat Landing, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Dalton Smith (left) and William Ard, with Renegade Bowfishing, pause as they look over the front of the boat for an alligator to rise from the water along the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort. Alligator hunting is allowed day and night. Smith came down from Spartanburg with two friends to hunt for an alligator.
Blood slowly seeps out of an alligator shot by Dalton Smith as it floats on the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort. Tagged alligators must be 4 feet or greater in length.
William Ard, with Renegade Bowfishing, scours the banks of creek near the Combahee River with a spotlight while searching for alligators on a hunt, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort. Ard works with Cole Poplin to guide hunters through South Carolina’s game zones for the cold-blooded reptiles.
Cole Poplin, with Renegade Bowfishing, puts together an arrow tip for Dalton Smith to take a shot at an alligator while hunting on the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort. Smith hired Ard to help him hunt for alligators after he was awarded a tag this season.
Cole Poplin, with Renegade Bowfishing, guides the boat along the Combahee River as Dalton Smith looks along the banks for alligator eyes as William Ard, with Renegade Bowfishing, points a spotlight, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
A sliver of light illuminates the scales of an alligator killed by Dalton Smith at Steel Bridge Boat Landing, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
An alligator thrashes in the water after being hit with an arrow as Dalton Smith and William Ard, with Renegade Bowfishing, attempt to pull it to the surface of the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
An alligator stretches across the Cole Poplin, with Renegade Fishing, boat after it was killed along the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Cole Poplin, with Renegade Bowfishing, pilots his boat past a small alligator in a creek beside the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Amber light from Cole Poplin, with Renegade Bowfishing, boat illuminates the banks of a creek near the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Cole Poplin and William Ard, with Renegade Bowfishing, lay out an alligator on its back after killing it with a group of hunters from Spartanburg at Steel Bridge Boat Landing, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Cole Poplin, with Renegade Bowfishing, points his light at an alligator on the ground after returning with hunters from hunting on the Combahee River at Steel Bridge Boat Landing, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Trey Lemmons holds a broken arrow tip his friend, Dalton Smith, fired at an alligator while hunting on the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
William Ard (left), with Renegade Bowfishing, uses a treble hook to pull up an alligator for Dalton Smith to fire an arrow attached to a buoy while hunting on the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Leathery alligator skin glistens in the light as it lays on the ground at Steel Bridge Boat Landing, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
William Ard (left) and Cole Poplin, with Renegade Bowfishing, point out details on the alligator’s head with Dalton Smith, Trey Lemmons and Drew Parrish as they discuss the hunt after returning to Steel Bridge Boat Landing, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
William Ard, with Renegade Bowfishing, prepares to drop a fishing hook to snare an alligator in a creek beside the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Tarp is set in the back of a truck for ice to be packed onto an alligator to remain fresh at Steel Boat Bridge Landing, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Trey Lemmons records his friend, Dalton Smith, preparing to take a shot at an alligator on the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Cole Poplin (left), with Renegade Bowfishing, helps Dalton Smith attach a tag to the tail of an alligator after killing it on the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Amber light from Cole Poplin, with Renegade Bowfishing, boat illuminates the banks of a creek near the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Cole Poplin, with Renegade Bowfishing, measures an alligator on the ground after returning with hunters from hunting on the Combahee River at Steel Bridge Boat Landing, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Dalton Smith (left) and William Ard, with Renegade Bowfishing, pause as they look over the front of the boat for an alligator to rise from the water along the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort. Alligator hunting is allowed day and night. Smith came down from Spartanburg with two friends to hunt for an alligator.
Blood slowly seeps out of an alligator shot by Dalton Smith as it floats on the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort. Tagged alligators must be 4 feet or greater in length.
William Ard, with Renegade Bowfishing, scours the banks of creek near the Combahee River with a spotlight while searching for alligators on a hunt, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort. Ard works with Cole Poplin to guide hunters through South Carolina’s game zones for the cold-blooded reptiles.
Cole Poplin, with Renegade Bowfishing, puts together an arrow tip for Dalton Smith to take a shot at an alligator while hunting on the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort. Smith hired Ard to help him hunt for alligators after he was awarded a tag this season.
Cole Poplin, with Renegade Bowfishing, guides the boat along the Combahee River as Dalton Smith looks along the banks for alligator eyes as William Ard, with Renegade Bowfishing, points a spotlight, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
A sliver of light illuminates the scales of an alligator killed by Dalton Smith at Steel Bridge Boat Landing, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
An alligator thrashes in the water after being hit with an arrow as Dalton Smith and William Ard, with Renegade Bowfishing, attempt to pull it to the surface of the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
An alligator stretches across the Cole Poplin, with Renegade Fishing, boat after it was killed along the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Cole Poplin, with Renegade Bowfishing, pilots his boat past a small alligator in a creek beside the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Amber light from Cole Poplin, with Renegade Bowfishing, boat illuminates the banks of a creek near the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Cole Poplin and William Ard, with Renegade Bowfishing, lay out an alligator on its back after killing it with a group of hunters from Spartanburg at Steel Bridge Boat Landing, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Cole Poplin, with Renegade Bowfishing, points his light at an alligator on the ground after returning with hunters from hunting on the Combahee River at Steel Bridge Boat Landing, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Trey Lemmons holds a broken arrow tip his friend, Dalton Smith, fired at an alligator while hunting on the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
William Ard (left), with Renegade Bowfishing, uses a treble hook to pull up an alligator for Dalton Smith to fire an arrow attached to a buoy while hunting on the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Leathery alligator skin glistens in the light as it lays on the ground at Steel Bridge Boat Landing, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
William Ard (left) and Cole Poplin, with Renegade Bowfishing, point out details on the alligator’s head with Dalton Smith, Trey Lemmons and Drew Parrish as they discuss the hunt after returning to Steel Bridge Boat Landing, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
William Ard, with Renegade Bowfishing, prepares to drop a fishing hook to snare an alligator in a creek beside the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Tarp is set in the back of a truck for ice to be packed onto an alligator to remain fresh at Steel Boat Bridge Landing, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Trey Lemmons records his friend, Dalton Smith, preparing to take a shot at an alligator on the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Cole Poplin (left), with Renegade Bowfishing, helps Dalton Smith attach a tag to the tail of an alligator after killing it on the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Amber light from Cole Poplin, with Renegade Bowfishing, boat illuminates the banks of a creek near the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Hunters understand the risk. Still, they pursue them when the season comes. The pool to get a tag has grown larger, and, with that, the opportunity of hunting one has gotten smaller.
“Any time you are able to see and witness any animal in its true habitat it’s a privilege to mankind,” Smith said.
An alligator stretches across the Cole Poplin, with Renegade Fishing, boat after it was killed along the Combahee River, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, near Beaufort.
Gavin McIntyre/Staff
South Carolina allows one animal to be killed per tag. DNR provided another option this year with slot tags, which allow hunters to take an alligator between 4 and 8 feet, measured from snout to tip of the tail.
Female alligators normally max out at 9 feet, while male alligators can grow much larger.
“They’re much smarter than people give them credit for,” Hart said. “A larger alligator, especially one that’s 60 or 70 years old, they’ve lived through every legal hunting season we’ve had.”
DNR received more than 12,000 applicants for hunting tags this year. The state agency awarded 1,000 regular tags and 400 slot tags.
“It’s mostly people who live in South Carolina,” Hart said. “This is a very popular hunt because it’s the right blend of dangerous and exciting.”
DNR allows alligator hunting in four zones; Southern Coastal, Middle Coast, Midlands and Pee Dee.
Poplin and Ard took the Spartanburg hunters on the Combahee River, which is in the heart of the ACE Basin and splits Beaufort and Colleton counties in the Southern Coastal Zone.
Hunts can range from five minutes to several hours. Poplin and Ard rely on a spotlight to reflect off an alligator’s eyes to find their prize. It is illegal to free shoot an alligator, as it could sink if killed or dive away injured.
A specific toolkit is used to capture and kill them. Arrows attached with a restraining line, a weighted treble hook with a restraining line, a .357 bangstick and a .22-caliber Ruger was used by Smith to kill the alligator.