With no Noah’s Ark to ferry them away, they’re showing up in some unusual spots, Texas wildlife officials and professionals say. Those same people add, despite the fearsome reputation of some animals, there’s no reason to panic.

“In Houston, you’ve got pretty much two things: Where you build, which is higher, and where you don’t build, which is low. Wildlife is going to seek the higher areas, which happens to be the places where we build,” said Kelly Norrid, an urban wildlife biologist for Texas Parks and Wildlife. “Mammals that don’t want to be in the water … may end up being in your attic or garage.”

… An alligator in the yard is probably the last thing many Texans, coping with a natural disaster, need right now. But [alligator relocation specialist Chris] Stephens said he’s telling callers to stay calm, keep their distance and definitely don’t try for a selfie with the animal; those with a gator under their car might try nudging it with a long push broom, he said.

“They got flooded out of their pond, they got flooded out of their river,” he said. “They had to evacuate, too.”