News 12 at 6 o'clock, July 2, 2009

NORTH AUGUSTA, S.C.---There's plenty of wildlife, including more than half a dozen alligators, in the newest part of North Augusta's Greeneway. But there is an alarming trend of people are feeding those animals and that could lead to some dangerous encounters.

There's all kinds of birds, turtles, and even a handful of alligators at Brick Pond Park. The people who run the place are asking you to leave the animals alone, to keep everyone safe.

Shaun Hardman and his son Patrick are out taking in the sites and sounds at North Augusta's Brick Pond Park -- and that includes gators.

"It's fun to see. It makes it almost like a zoo but in a natural environment," says Shaun.

There are many alligators floating around in the park's waters, a park prided for its wildlife.

"You might see them floating in the water, you might see them sunning on a log but your not going to see them coming toward people and we want to keep it that way," says Tanya Strickland, the North Augusta Environmental Coordinator.

But some are worried they may not stay away if people continue to feed the animals in the park.

"The only time they become a threat is when people start feeding the wildlife, and that goes for all the wildlife. They see that humans can be equated with food and we don't want that because then they will come towards people," says Strickland.

They've already noticed a difference in other wildlife, like birds and especially turtles.

"Now when you walk up to the pavilion the turtles come to you and you'll see from far away they'll all start swimming toward you and that's new," says Strickland.

Christian Rodgers and Grace Myers are spending the day fishing. Christian's already come close to a gator. "We were on the dock, somewhere that way, and we came encounter with a little one, a foot and half maybe two foot," says Christian.

"I actually haven't seen any but I have heard a lot of stories, but I haven't seen any yet. It would be fun though, to see one and stuff but I wouldn't get near it," says Grace.

For Shaun and Patrick, every day at the park is an adventure, it's always a short walk on the wild side.

"Keep your distance. Look from afar and everything should be okay," says Shaun.

There are signs that say do not feed the alligators but park officials do plan on adding more signs to remind people not to feed any of the animals.

DNR says they would only issue a permit to remove an alligator if it becomes a nuisance, in other words if it becomes aggressive and then park officials would have to not only remove it, but get rid of it completely.