HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C.  —  Almost 1,500 hunters have applied for permits to shoot alligators during South Carolina's gator hunt this fall.

The deadline for applying was this week. Only 1,000 permits will be issued by a random drawing.

The Department of Natural Resources authorized the hunt to cull some of the estimated 100,000 gators in the state's waters. The season will run from Sept. 13 through Oct. 11.

Hunters may take only one gator and it must be more than 4 feet long. Hunters will not be permitted to shoot alligators until they have been captured and tied up.