A Welsh man said he locked eyes with an alligator while taking out his mother's trash on Tuesday morning.
According to Akeem Jackson, there were no injuries, but he was surprised to see an alligator in his mother's front yard.
"I was coming out to throw the trash and I seen an alligator and it raised up on me and I just, I froze," Jackson said. "I think it was 10-9 or 10-2 or something like that."
Jackson said he went back inside his mother's house when he saw the alligator and his mother quickly called the police.
Jeb Linscombe, Public Information Officer for Louisiana Wildlife & Fisheries said the highest number of wildlife complaints come in during this time of year.
Linscombe said there's two factors that contribute to alligators moving around and becoming more visible in various communities.
"When the air temperature becomes warmer than the water temperature, then, animals start moving out of the water on the land because they can get in the sun and warm up, whereas if they stayed in the water because the temperature now is still cooler," Linscombe said.
According to the Smithsonian's National Zoo, courtship for alligators starts in April, but mating typically happens in early May.
While no injuries were reported, the alligator found in Jennings was removed by a Nuisance Alligator Hunter from the state's wildlife and fisheries department and sent to a business for harvesting.
Wildlife experts advise people not to feed, approach or interact with alligators.
Instead, Linscombe recommends contacting authorized professionals to remove any alligators detected in or near residential areas by visiting Contact Us | Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.
