10:16 PM CDT on Tuesday, May 30, 2006

Watch Matt Sczesny’s Report

(KMOV) - First it was coyotes living in a St. Louis City park, now an alligator has been discovered living in another city park.      

KMOV

A small pond tucked away in the far southeast corner of Layfayette Park hardly seems like the place for an alligator.

But for about a week, it was the perfect place.

David Doyle fished a two-foot gator from the pond last week.

It appears some residents around Layfayette Park noticed the gator lounging in the water and making himself at home.

Reptile experts here believe the gator, native to the southeast, was most likely a pet that was let go.

It happens often. Three years ago, a discarded three-foot gator kept people around a north St. Louis County pond on their toes.

David Doyle at the St. Louis herpetological society says the gator caught last week will stay here for a while to be used for education.

In the last 12 months, they have rescued 35 alligators in the St. Louis Metro area.