CLAREMORE, Okla. — The Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation (ODWC) released a photo of an alligator found in Claremore Lake in May.

The 9-foot 6-inch alligator was found in the lake, after receiving reports from people who saw it. It was euthanized.

While many were upset over the euthanizing of the alligator, ODWC officials defended the action, citing the alligators size, unknown origin and familiarity with people.

Micah Holmes, ODWC assistant chief of the Communication and Education Division, said euthanizing the alligator was the safest thing to do.

“It was a big animal and we didn’t feel like we could safely catch it in a live condition, and even if we did, we can’t move it to another part of Oklahoma where they may be found, because we don’t know where it came from, what diseases it might have, and of course our main concern is public safety,” said Holmes. “So if this animal is habituated to being around humans, we don’t want this animal coming up to humans for food because that situation can certainly turn worse.”

Officials are not sure where the alligator came from, though they think someone most likely put it into the lake illegally.

“We’ve never had any reports of an alligator of that size at the lake, and biologists tell us that it would be very unlikely that an animal can survive a lifetime and grow that big throughout the winters that we have,” Holmes said.

The Claremore community held a festival to remember the alligator.

The ODWC said they have no reason to believe there are any other alligators in the lake.

©2022 Cox Media Group