‘He would bite me in the face if I didn’t get out of the way’: Incredible scenes where reptile expert ‘Crocodile Chris’ blows playful bubbles at a killer alligator called Casper as they swim together
- Stunning footage shows Chris playing with Casper at Everglades Outpost
Incredible scenes showed daredevil reptile expert Chris Gillette playing underwater with a deadly alligator in Florida.
In the stunning footage, “Crocodile Chris” can be seen blowing bubbles in Casper to introduce the Underwater Gator Tour to the Everglades outpost.
For tours, only one guest is allowed to swim with the alligator along with Chris to see how the predator moves in a 30,000-gallon aquatic habitat.
Chris said, “Gator trying to bite me in the face? No, it’s just Casper fumbling around while I blow rings of bubbles at him.
“I mean, he would bite me in the face if I didn’t get out of the way.
In the stunning footage, “Crocodile Chris” can be seen performing with Casper as part of the Underwater Gator Tour at the Everglades Outpost in Homestead, Florida.
Reptile expert Chris Gillette in the water with an alligator. For tours, only one guest is allowed to swim with the alligator along with Chris to see how the predator moves in a 30,000-gallon aquatic habitat.
“When he does this, he has his eyes closed and feels underwater.”
The underwater tour experience allows you to swim with an alligator, with just a mesh barrier between you and the reptile.
It’s designed for serious underwater photographers and wildlife enthusiasts aged 16 or older and costs $250 for a 30-minute session.
Visitors are not allowed to touch the alligator, but they can get close enough to study the reptile’s behavior.
Casper is one of 15 alligators and four crocodiles at the Everglades outpost. Gillette has been working with the reptile for over 12 years.
Chris holds Casper at the Everglades Outpost. The underwater tour offered by the educational organization is designed for serious underwater photographers and wildlife enthusiasts aged 16 or older and costs $250 for a 30-minute session.
It had been considered a “nuisance alligator” by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission more than a decade ago, according to Adventura Magazine.
“People want to do this, and I had to find a way to be able to satisfy that demand,” Chris told the publication. “That’s when I had the idea for people to do this responsibly. We do not, under any circumstances, encourage people to interact with or attempt to swim with a wild alligator.
To maintain his “quarterback constitution”, Casper lives on a steady diet of frozen rats.
“He will bite the hand that feeds him,” Chris said. “He is not drugged or specially trained. He hasn’t been raised with us since he was a baby. He was caught when he was only 6 inches smaller than he is today.
Chris beneath Casper and swimming alongside him as he smiles for the camera at the Everglades Outpost
Everglades Outpost Homestead is a 501c(3) nonprofit educational organization established in 1991 by Bob Freer and his wife Barbara. Their main goal is to take in injured wild animals, rehabilitate them and release them into the wild.
Most of the animals staying in the wildlife area have been confiscated due to illegal or abusive situations by Fish and Game officers, or have been abandoned by their human owners.
The rehabilitation center provides medical care and treatment to the sick and injured. Where possible, the animal is released into its natural habitat.
