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An unexpected sunbather caught a South Texas family by surprise — one that required the response of a specialized crew to carry out an impromptu eviction.

Last Tuesday, July 28, a 10-foot-long American alligator was discovered swimming in a residential pool in Los Fresnos, the quiet Rio Grande Valley farm town located along Texas 100 about 25 miles west of South Padre Island.

Kayla Quintero described finding the gator as “one of the most terrifying and traumatic experiences” she’s been through. Quintero told MySA the alligator was lurking at the bottom of the swimming pool in her parents’ Los Fresnos home. While grateful that no one was hurt in the encounter, she openly wondered how things could have turned out if a child or pet had discovered the wild animal first.

“I’m asking our community to come together and advocate for warning signs to be placed near our resacas and canals, letting people know that alligators may be present,” Quintero said in a Facebook post two days after the encounter.

“Many families walk, fish, or spend time near these areas without realizing the potential danger,” she said.

Ultimately, the alligator was safely relocated by the South Padre Island Birding, Nature Center & Alligator Sanctuary. Jacob Reinbolt, the center’s alligator expert and licensed nuisance alligator trapper, told MySA that the animal likely came from a nearby waterway and may have been looking for a new territory to call its own thanks to various factors, including competition from other gators and the encroachment of new land development.

Like many cities throughout Cameron County, a number of resacas, or oxbow lakes, wind their way across the landscape. The placid, snakelike waterways mark the routes the Rio Grande once followed before time and weather changed its course. While resacas make for comfortable environments for alligators, they also serve as highly sought-after natural features in burgeoning neighborhoods — more of which are popping up in the Los Fresnos area thanks to a boom in the space and energy industries.

It’s not the first time a gator has been spotted in the area. Last March, TxDOT crews working north of Los Fresnos spotted some of the scaly reptiles along Farm-to-Market Road 106. But the animals are not necessarily out of place. The species is native to Texas but was once at risk of extinction due to overhunting and habitat loss, according to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD). Since being listed as endangered in the late-1960s, populations have rebounded. Reinbolt said there may be as many as 25,000 alligators in the Valley. He estimated the one captured in Los Fresnos is a mature adult.

“It’s difficult to guess an alligator’s age just by looking, but I would estimate this alligator to be in his 30s or 40s. He is 10 feet long, but he was also missing the last 4-6 inches of his tail,” Reinbolt said.

The gator expert advised people to remain calm if they encounter an alligator, which is likely to avoid contact. Instead, he encouraged people to abide by certain rules to reduce the danger.

“Admire them from afar… keep pets on leashes and a safe distance from the water’s edge. Always supervise children near water. Don’t swim in natural bodies of water at night, or at dawn or dusk,” Reinbolt said.

And most importantly, do not feed wild alligators, Reinbolt said.

“Feeding an alligator teaches them that people have food and can encourage them to start approaching people,” he said.

Alligator sightings should be reported to TPWD at 512-389-4848 so that a licensed trapper can safely remove them.