Since they have a slow metabolic rate, alligators aren’t often involved in eating frequently. The problem, of course, is that the lake in this dog park now has a resident alligator. “Bears are actually afraid of dogs—and cats,” he says. Large alligators can eat smaller alligators as well. The Diet Of The Alligator. Their habitats range from deserts to swamps to suburbs.“They prefer a brushy area, far away from open space,” says Harry Spiker, Maryland’s Fur-Bearer Biologist for the Department of Natural Resources. “Black bears are forest animals that prefer places that are not open and have a lot of trees,” says Lynn Rogers, a senior biologist whose lifelong study of bears has included living among them.Rogers, founder of the North American Bear Center in Ely, Minnesota, says that as bears “habituate, meaning they get more accustomed to seeing more people in and around their space; they lose their fear of humans, and we see more of them in different spaces.” He calls the term ‘attack’ inaccurate, as most “encounters with bears are of a defensive nature.” He offers the example of a mother bear focused on protecting her cubs.Rogers says the wisest thing to do is always keep your dog under control and firmly on a leash when walking in wildlife habitats. They will feed on fish, frogs, small mammals, and even smaller alligators. An adult alligator can gain a weigh of fifty pounds of prey each year, and it can also survive for one year without eating.The muscles of alligator’s jaws are perfectly adaptable to grip and bite its prey. else in Florida, alligators occupy every body of fresh water in the state. Occasionally, they also consume ambush dogs, The American alligator is by far the most apex predator within its range. Mostly, alligators prefer to eat food which can be consumed in one bite. Smaller than wolves, with a slender build and distinctive call, coyotes have adapted to suburban living.“Coyotes do very well scavenging humans’ trash and making easy meals of outside pets,” says Dr. Payer. She got within about 20 feet as I continued to back away, firmly saying ‘No!’” At the last moment, the moose veered, returning to her calf, and we went on by. Their powerful jaws help them eat smaller animals with a single bite.
“If you live in an area where wildlife can be a problem, a 6-foot fence will keep out bears, wolves, coyotes and moose,” he says.Although bungee cords around trash cans may deter raccoons from scavenging, “bears and bigger wildlife will rip through a bungee cord,” says Dr. Scarola.