Open season on alligators may be fast approaching. Florida wildlife managers said the once-endangered reptile's numbers are growing and a change in the gator's status may be in order.

Fish and Wildlife experts have been holding hearings to gauge public opinion. They want to know what people think about loosening the rules that regulate gator hunting.

One possibility would be to allow Floridians to kill gators on their own property.

At the Alligator Farm in St. Augustine, Fla., visitors pay to see American alligators up close. However, gators popping up near homes is usually a less-welcomed experience.

Whether a property owner should have the right to hunt an alligator on his or her land remains an issue.

"I do want to protect my family if they are on my land, because you never know. They could sneak up on a child, and who knows what could happen? said homeowner Jerry Roman.

Other homeowners said they believe the gator-hunting proposition could be a dangerous one because of how aggressive the animals can be.

"People won't be hurt by an alligator until they start getting into an environment with them and trying to do something about them. Even an alligator that looks dead after one shot could still bite somebody," said alligator farm director John Brueggen.

Florida Fish and Wildlife officials said they want to let more people hunt alligators because the animal's numbers are stable and even growing.

However, as far as letting property owners tackle the animals, they said that's nowhere near a done deal.

"Right now, it's a fact-finding mission. We want to get input from the public," said Karen Parker of Florida Fish and Wildlife.