PETA's Australian campaign manager Claire Fryer told SBS News it was concerning that people have such easy access to these beach areas without being made aware of the risks.
"Disney knew there were alligators in the area and should have had warning signs in place," she said.
"Although the instances of this sort of attack happening are rare, it is not news that alligators are predators and you would hope that people would be made more aware of the risk they are taking by being near the water."
While Disney has ‘no swimming’ signs posted in the area, there are no signs warning people of alligators; a Disney spokesperson has said the company will " thoroughly review the situation for the future."
Executive director of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) Nick Wiley spoke at a press conference, saying that they have captured and euthanised five alligators in the area surrounding where the boy was taken to determine if they were responsible for the attack.
Helicopters scan the sky above the Grand Floridian Resort and Spa in the search for a missing toddler on Wednesday, June 15. Source: Getty Images
"We're going to look at the gators we've already taken and if we can't get a certain match we are going to continue to look for the gator until we can find it," said Mr Wiley.
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Ms Fryer hopes that this isolated incident isn't going to inspire a knee-jerk reaction that would negatively impact the other alligators in the area.
"Although it's incredibly tragic for the parents, killing these alligators isn't going to bring the boy back," Ms Fryer said.
"It is well known that killing individual animals isn't going to help and it will have negative impacts on the ecosystem. If you remove the alligators more are going to come in from other areas and take their place," she said.
Ms Fryer said it's possible to see correlations between this case and instances of shark attacks in Australia.
"The fact is that attacks like this are rare, but at least when we go into the water in Australia we have been made aware of the risks, and go into the water willingly."
"It doesn't make it OK to then go out and kill that animal who was just acting naturally," she said.
Sheriff Demings said at a press conference that Disney has a wildlife management system and has "worked diligently to ensure their guests are not unduly exposed to wildlife here in this area".
A boat belonging to the Orange County Sheriff's office searches the Seven Seas lagoon ouside Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa Source: Getty Images
"Disney does everything by the book, and they have an amazing program for keeping track of and monitoring, and then addressing any concerns that arise," Mr Wiley echoed during the conference.
PETA hopes that Disney will take measures to live peacefully alongside the alligators and other animals.
"Putting warning signs in is the right move to make," PETA's Australian campaign manager Claire Fryer urged.
"Places like Disney are reducing the animal's natural habitat and they are being forced to live closer to humans in an effort to survive."
"Hopefully putting protective measures in place can ensure we live in harmony with these fascinating, intelligent animals," Ms Fryer added.
Disney chief executive Bob Iger issued a statement to express his sympathies "as a parent and a grandparent", and said that everyone at the park was devastated by the accident.
The alligator incident came as Orlando reeled from a gunman killing 49 people at a gay nightclub in the city on Sunday before dying in a shoot-out with police.
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