By Robert Hudson

The Selma Times-Journal

The weekly discussion at Selma’s Kiwanis Club meetings have covered a wide range of topics over the years, but it is a good bet, Tuesday’s topic was a first.

This week’s topic focused on the recent alligator hunting season that just wrapped up in Dallas and Wilcox counties.

The two county’s first alligator hunting season produced a number of state record-breaking captures.

Kiwanis member, and organizer of the meeting, Lee Youngblood said the season generated a lot of interest in the local area.

“We had our first alligator season ever these past two weekends and it has created quite a lot of interest, a lot of stir and a lot of local people killed some big, record-breaking alligators,” Youngblood said. “It’s the talk of the town.”

Youngblood had three speakers give three different perspectives on the season.

The speakers included a representative of the media, James “Big Daddy” Lawler of WJDB 955, a person who participated in the hunt and a member of law enforcement, Allan Roach of the Alabama Department of Conservation.

One of the ideas put forth was to use interest created by the record-breaking captures to help generate tourism in the area.

“I think it’s going to be an opportunity to tweak it a little bit, so the general public can come out and see the alligators brought in and weighed in,” Youngblood said. “It’s not exactly a spectator sport as far as going out on the river because when you’re hunting these alligators you have to be really quiet.

“But as far as the weigh in, that can be something that’s real exciting, kind of like a weigh in at a fishing tournament. It’d be a pretty good tourism boost.”