Am I really seeing this? Dead alligator found on Martha's Vineyard

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15-05-2025

Vineyarder David Kelliher didn't expect to find anything out of the ordinary when he set out for an afternoon walk with his dog, Feta, at Sepiessa Point Reservation in West Tisbury on May 10.
But what he saw near Tisbury Great Pond stopped him in his tracks.
It was a dead alligator, missing its hide from the back of its head to the tip of its tail, lying among the stalks of last season's marsh grasses, with fresh green shoots just beginning to emerge through the tangle.
"I was walking my dog on the inland side to the pond and came across this alligator," he said, talking by phone on May 13.
The discovery was made at the small pond between Tiah Cove and Tississa Pond, within the nearly 174-acre Martha's Vineyard Land Bank property. According to the state environmental officials, the Massachusetts Environmental Police are investigating the matter in cooperation with Tisbury Animal Control Officer Heather Maciel, who declined to comment further.
On May 13, the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife confirmed that a staff herpetologist had verified, based on photos, that the animal was an American alligator. The alligator was about 5 feet long, making it 3 to 5 years old — the species typically grows about a foot per year during its first four to six years, according to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.
Kelliher said when he first saw the alligator, he kept blinking, wondering if he was really seeing what he thought he was — a creature suited to the swamps of Florida, not to the shores of a New England island.
"I was like 'is this a plastic thing?' And I examined it and thought, 'no, that looks like real flesh, those claws look real,'" he said.
Kelliher took a photo and sent it to his wife, who also recognized the carcass as an alligator.
"It's one of those things that you're afraid to tell somebody because they won't believe you," he said. "And when I went back there later, I was still expecting to get 'that's not an alligator.'"
Kelliher said the remains didn't appear decomposed or badly decayed, noting, 'it wasn't smelly. I don't think it was dead long,' though he acknowledged he's no expert.
He can only guess at where the alligator came from, and how long it had been there. The nearby pond, he said, is brackish — "just like the kind of pond an alligator could live in."
When one of Kelliher's customers shared a photo of the alligator with a relative in Florida who occasionally hunts them, the relative said it appeared the animal had been intentionally skinned, rather than scavenged by other animals. Florida allows alligator hunting, though the activity is strictly regulated.
MassWildlife agreed that the condition of the carcass — with the head and feet intact and the hide cleanly removed — suggests the animal may have been skinned for its leather.
Another possibility is that it was purchased for consumption but ultimately discarded. Wildlife officials do not know the origin of the animal at this time, but the agency said it may also have been hunted in another area where alligators are found, and its body brought back to Massachusetts.
Kelliher, for one, hopes the ongoing investigation will successfully solve the mystery.
"There's so many questions you could ask about this," he said. "If somebody did skin it, why did they take it there after they skinned it? It's very mysterious."
He, for one, would be curious to know what the alligator last ate, which could give insight into whether the animal had been living in the marsh prior to its death — though the state's cold climate makes it impossible for them to survive naturally for long — or if it was last fed in captivity.
Massachusetts law prohibits keeping any crocodilian species — including alligators, crocodiles, caimans, and gavials — as pets.
Anyone with information regarding the alligator, or any other illegal wildlife activity, is encouraged to contact the environmental police at 800-632-8075.
Heather McCarron writes about climate change, environment, energy, science and the natural world, in addition to news and features in Barnstable and Brewster. Reach her at [e-mail].
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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Alligator on Martha's Vineyard: Dead reptile found in West Tisbury