Two for One: Minnesota Deer Hunter Bags Buck and Gator
A Minnesota hunter found more than deer opening weekend when he also harvested a 3-foot alligator.
Cory Klocek, a 35-year-old Minnesota man, was hunting on farmland about 40 miles north of Minneapolis. Klocek shot what he described as a “beautiful 10-point buck,” the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported. Almost immediately after, he noticed an alligator in a nearby pond.
“No clue how it got there, or why,” Klocek said in a Facebook post. “I’m guessing someone had it as a pet and released it when it got too big.”
Klocek contacted the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, which gave him permission to shoot the alligator. He chose to use a .22 caliber handgun, instead of his shotgun, and returning to the pond, he shot the alligator in the head.
“Only in 2020 can you go out … for deer gun season opener in Minnesota and shoot an alligator,” Klocek told the Star Tribune. “I’m still at a loss of words.”
Department of Natural Resources spokesman Joe Albert confirmed Klocek got the green light from his agency to take out the reptile because it has “no special protection.”
Klocek said he intends to pair the buck and the gator together for a “fun taxidermy piece.”
Jeremy Mallette is co-founder of International Sportsman. An avid hunter and outdoorsman, he has spent more than a decade in the outdoor industry, from hiking and camping to silencers and hunting. His father taught him to shoot at age six, and he received his first firearm at age eight — a 1942 Colt Commando .38 special revolver. He enjoys yearly trips to Kansas for pheasant hunting, spending time with his children at the deer lease, and collecting unique firearms.