About that Lake Erie alligator: Sandusky County once had its own reptile, other sightings

FREMONT ― The search for an alligator along the Lake Erie shoreline this week has drawn attention from around the world. It's not the only unexpected creature that's been sighted on the Great Lake over the years.

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Several unusual animal sightings have taken place in Sandusky County, and Andrew Brown, director of the Sandusky County Park District, keeps an informal list that includes spoonbills, porcupines and alligators.

“We have experienced some weird animal sightings,” Brown said.

He related stories of three different strange animals for the area that fit into three different categories: released pets, lost animals and rarities.

Roseate spoonbill sighting

The most recent was in 2021.

“This was not a release, or some sort of accident. This was an off-course bird. This is a spoonbill,” Brown said, referring to a photograph.

The roseate spoonbill was photographed by a park district employee at the Sandusky County Park District’s Doug Haubert Wetlands. The birds are found on every continent except Antarctica, but in North America are usually found nesting in Florida.

“We had people from all over taking pictures and checking out the spoonbill. It finally moved on,” Brown said.

He saw the spoonbill many times.

“I would swing by every once in a while. I would talk to people, and there were people there from all over the area and checking things out and watching that spoonbill. He hung around for a long time,” Brown said.

He said the pink coloration has to do with the shrimp and other small animals they eat, which changes the bird’s pigmentation. They are commonly mistaken for flamingos.

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The Sandusky County alligator

There was also the alligator in Sandusky County.

The story that has been passed down in the park district, from about 20 years ago, when an alligator was sighted in the wetlands near White Star Park.

“At White Star, we obviously have a couple acres of wetland habitat. We actually also had an alligator in our wetlands at one time. It was sizeable. I was not directly involved, (the story) was passed down,” Brown hesitatingly said. “It was an accidental release. Turns out somebody in the Gibsonburg neighborhood was caring for the animal, and, you know, it got too big, and it was moved to the garage, and it escaped, was the story.”

He's unsure of the truth behind the way the alligator got out. The alligator wasn’t talking.

“It’s entirely possible that it was released. They ended up taking it back into custody. It was caught somehow, and they took it back. It was big enough that people started noticing, for sure. It was popping up. The head popped up, that kind of thing,” Brown said, laughing.

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The Blue Heron Reserve porcupine

Some animals were native to Ohio but are no longer found in the area.

“At Blue Heron Reserve, near the Pickerel Creek, for a while we had a porcupine,” Brown said. “It’s very unusual. We’re fairly sure it was a pet that was released. There are no other reports of porcupines in the area, nearby, nothing like that, that I’m aware of. It’s the only one we’ve ever noticed, been aware of or ever heard about.”

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife received a handful of porcupine sightings, but refers to them as rare. They are more common in Pennsylvania, with most Ohio sightings in the northeast counties.

The second-largest North American rodent to the beaver, they are usually seen in trees.

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This article originally appeared on Fremont News-Messenger: About that Lake Erie alligator: Sandusky County once had its own reptile, other sightings