A kayaker fishing for salmon off Waukegan Harbor on Monday morning found an unexpected animal in the water — a 4-foot-long American alligator. 
 
 Chicago resident David Castaneda had been paddling for about four hours when around 9:30 a.m. he saw something floating in the water, he said. Thinking it was a dead salmon, he went closer to check. 
 
 Instead, he saw an alligator head, Castaneda said. 
 
 “I went closer to see if it was real,” he said. “I was just in shock. I wasn’t sure if it was a real alligator or a toy.” 
 
 Castaneda called 911 to report the alligator, and Waukegan’s Animal Control responded. 
 
 The animal, which had its mouth taped shut, “was definitely on borrowed time,” said Rob Carmichael, curator for the Wildlife Discovery Center in Lake Forest, where the alligator is being taken. 
 
 “I would say it would be lucky if it lived another couple weeks,” Carmichael said. “Lake Michigan is only getting colder and colder each week.” 
 
 Carmichael said he and a veterinarian will assess the alligator’s condition once it arrives. 
 
 The city had initially reported the animal found as a caiman, which is similar to an alligator, but the Wildlife Discovery Center told the city later in the day Monday that it was an American alligator. 
 
 It is unknown how long the animal was in the water with its mouth taped shut, Carmichael added, saying the alligator looked to be on the thin side from what he has seen so far. 
 
 He expects the Discovery Center to know within three to five days how serious the situation is, but as long as there aren’t any major issues like a bacterial infection, Carmichael said he thinks they should be able to get the animal turned around. 
 
 City of Waukegan Nicole Garza, an animal warden for the city of Waukegan, rescues a 4-foot-long alligator that was discovered by a kayaker off Waukegan Harbor in Lake Michigan. Nicole Garza, an animal warden for the city of Waukegan, rescues a 4-foot-long alligator that was discovered by a kayaker off Waukegan Harbor in Lake Michigan. (City of Waukegan) 
 
 An investigation into whether the animal was abandoned, which is a crime, will “absolutely” be conducted, city spokesman David Motley said. 
 
 The abandoning of exotic animals is something that occurs less than it used to as a result of stepped-up state regulations around ownership of endangered or threatened animals, which require permits to own, Carmichael said. 
 
 The system seems to be working, because Carmichael hasn’t seen as many cases like what happened in Waukegan within the last five years, Carmichael said. 
 
 Another time an exotic animal was discovered in Waukegan was in September 2012 when a nearly 14-foot, fully grown Burmese python was found near Waukegan Harbor, according to News-Sun reports. The snake was euthanized due to its wounds the next day. 
 
 An alligator was also discovered in the Chicago River under the Belmont Avenue bridge in August 2010, according to a Chicago Tribune report from the time. 
 
 “There’s a lot more accountability built into the system,” Carmichael said. “It requires people to jump through hoops, and that’s a good thing. It leaves out the people who want to do it for the ‘oh, wow’ factor.” 
 
 Some dangerous animals, like lions, bears or coyotes, are illegal to own under the state’s Dangerous Animals Act. 
 
 emcoleman@tribpub.com 
 
 Twitter @mekcoleman ||||| THE HEROES, THE BRAVE COUPLE WHO TOOK ON A GATOR AS A CLAMP DOWN ON TO A WOMAN'S ARM. WHAT THEY SAW AND DID TO SAVE THE PROFESSOR. I'M MATT AUSTIN. I'M LISA BELL. SHAUN CHAIYABHAT IS LIVE AT ORLANDO MEDICAL CENTER. YOU GOT AN UPDATE ON HER PROGRESS? Reporter: WE HAVE LEARNED THROUGH THEM HE UNDERWENT HIS SECOND SURGERY TODAY, THE NEXT STEP IS COVERING THE COST OF HER MOUNTING MEDICAL BILLS AND GETTING A PROSTHETIC ARM. IN JUST ONE DAY A GO FUND ME ACCOUNT FOR RACHEL HAS RAISED MORE THAN $11,000. THE FRIEND WHO SET UP THE ACCOUNT TOLD US SHE HAS A LONG ROAD TO RECOVERY. LOVER LOST HER RIGHT ARM WHEN A NEARLY 9 FOOT GATOR ATTACKED SATURDAY. THE ALLIGATOR WAS CLAMPED HER WHOLE RIGHT ARM. Reporter: SHE SURVIVED THANKS TO THESE TWO KAYAKERS. SHE WAS JUST SAYING THESE, HELP ME. PLEASE, HELP ME. MY BOYFRIEND THE ALLIGATOR WITH THE PADDLE. Reporter: HE PULLED HER ONTO THEIR KAYAK AND THAT IS WHEN THEY REALIZED HER ARM WAS GONE. THE GATOR WENT TO SHORE WITH HER BATHING STUDENT STILL IN ITS MOUTH IT WAS FOUND THE NEXT DAY AND EUTHANIZED DESPITE HER DEVASTATING INJURY THE SPANISH TEACHER THANKED SAVERS FROM THE HOSPITAL. SHE IS ADJUSTING. SHE LOOKS AT LIFE A LITTLE DIFFERENTLY. Reporter: NOW, INVESTIGATORS DO NOT KNOW WHY THE GATOR ATTACK BUT WILDLIFE EXPERTS TOLD US ONE REASON COULD BE BECAUSE SHE WAS SWIMMING ALONE 
 
 SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. - 
 
 A Central Florida woman remains hospitalized days after an alligator attacked her in the Wekiva River and chomped off her arm. 
 
 Rachael D. Lilenthal, 37, who teaches Spanish at Rollins College in Winter Park, was attacked by the alligator around 3:30 p.m. Saturday just west of the Wekiva Island Marina, Seminole County Fire Rescue officials said. 
 
 [AUDIO: Warning content may be graphic | 911 Call 1 | Call 2 | WEB EXTRAS: FWC's guide to living with alligators | Alligator Safety Tips | Stats on Alligator Bites ] 
 
 Investigators said Lilienthal felt something grab her and pull her under water. Moments later, she said she felt her arm break, according to officials. 
 
 Witnesses said Lilienthal fought with the large gator and tried to get to safety. A couple on a green kayak saw the woman and helped, beating the alligator with a paddle, causing the animal to release Lilienthal, officials said. 
 
 Witness Debra Morris said she was swimming in the river when she saw a woman swim past her into a secluded spot in the river. 
 
 "She was just swimming. Next thing you know, we heard the people come up and say, 'Get a boat. Call 911 because someone has been bit by a gator,'" Morris said. "Her right arm was bit up to here. It was gone. She had nothing. Like completely gone. (From the) elbow down, (her arm was) gone." 
 
 Lilenthal, who was also bitten on her abdomen, was taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center, but her official condition has not been released. 
 
 The gator, an 8 foot 9 inch male weighing 300 to 350 pounds, was captured Sunday morning and euthanized. Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officials said human body parts were found inside the gator's stomach. 
 
 FWC said the investigation would take weeks and investigators are looking into whether the gator had been fed and lost its fear of humans. 
 
 Former FWC trapper Fred Bohler said large male gators can become aggressive if their territory is invaded. 
 
 "In a secluded area some larger males may be opportunistic," said Bohler. "I would not swim down the middle of a river alone, and I would not go at night, that's the feeding hunting time for gators." 
 
 
 
 But he also added that Florida has more than 2 million alligators and attacks are very rare, especially in loud, busy areas. "More people are struck by lightning than they are injured by alligators," said Bohler. 
 
 
 
 Bohler said feeding gators is illegal and causes them to lose their fear of humans. Once that happens, they cannot be rehabilitated. 
 
 "Because you're creating a mini T-Rex and you're putting yourself on its menu," said Bohler. "If he's coming up to a human, that fear is lost and it's a dangerous animal." 
 
 More than $10,000 was raised as of Monday evening on a GoFundMe set up for Lilenthal by family friends. 
 
 Watch Local 6 News and stay with ClickOrlando.com for updates on this developing story.
– A kayaker hoping to reel in some salmon on Lake Michigan instead found himself face-to-snout with a 4-foot alligator on Monday. David Castaneda was fishing off Waukegan Harbor when he spotted the reptile swimming slowly with its mouth taped shut, reports the Lake County News-Sun. "I was just in shock," says Castaneda, who sent authorities a video to confirm the alligator wasn't a toy. Once rescued, it was taken to Wildlife Discovery Center in Lake Forest, where officials hope to nurse it back to health. Though the animal's condition remains unclear, curator Rob Carmichael says the gator was thin and likely would've died within a couple of weeks as "Lake Michigan is only getting colder and colder." An effort is now being made to trace the foreigner; an investigation will examine whether the exotic animal was abandoned against the law, says city spokesman David Motley. "These creatures are not indigenous," he tells the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "You can imagine the skepticism that came with it."