Alligator wanders into downtown Melbourne during Hurricane Irma

Florida Today

An alligator wandered onto the Strawbridge Avenue asphalt near the “Historic Downtown Melbourne” arch Sunday while storms rolled through the area as Hurricane Irma approached.

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While storms rolled through Melbourne because of Hurricane Irma, this "little guy" made his way to a grassy retention area.

A Melbourne Fire Department employee filmed the reptile walking off the pavement near a Space Coast Area Transit bus stop, then dashing into a grassy retention area, said Cheryl Mall, city spokeswoman.

Mall did not have additional details on the alligator encounter.

Bonus critter tale: Unrelated to the alligator crawling, and then sprinting, to the retention pond, FLORIDA TODAY reader Natalie Twine sent in a photo of a catfish swimming around Erik Court in Melbourne.

Here's a screengrab of a catfish swimming around Erik Court in Melbourne during Hurricane Irma on Sept. 10, 2017.

Contact Neale at 321-242-3638

or rneale@floridatoday.com.

Twitter: @rickneale1