Gator Days

Rick found this young gator at a nearby park this evening, and snapped the pictures you see here.

Sometimes, they're hard to see along the shoreline. I walked right past him and missed! This little guy isn't going to last very long if he doesn't learn to scatter away when humans are near.  Juvenile gators can sometimes be found in pods, staying close to their siblings and their nesting site.

I've begun to see more and more gators on the banks of our lakes lately, and as a result, I've started keeping Buddy on a tighter leash, and further away from the shoreline.  (I didn't have him with me this time.)

Observing the 20ft. rule is even more important as the days grow warmer.  A hungry gator can easily capture a dog that wanders within 20 ft of the shoreline.  With spring arriving, you'll find them up along the banks getting warm. Mating season is usually in April and May, and they tend to be more aggressive at that time.

Here's Brittany and what's left of Rick after Big Daddy Gator got ahold of him.

Brittany took this one of me in one of my favorite activities. 

I'd rather spend hours out here than 10 minutes with the celebrities in the post below.

Comments

[William]

The gators was one of the things that concerned me the most when I lived in Florida, especially with my littl ones.

[FC]

I had gator quality time yesterday.
Too bad about Rick's head.
We married guys understand that our heads are not really needed post wedding anyway.
They are more like the appendix ... a curious vestigial structure that once served a purpose.

[Janet]

yes, me too!

And I saw a gator when I was in FL last weekend; he was in a pond near the cell phone parking lot of the Orlando airport!

[OldOldLady Of The Hillsl]

The gators can be really treacherous, csn't they? Those are great pictures....! I've never seen a gator...In Real Life, I mean....And is seems you see them ALL the time....! What a treat!

[kenju]

I came upon one in SC, once, on a golf course near a pond. That was scary!

[Old Horsetail Snake]

Even young ones scarify me.

[mom]

The young ones are dangerous. In the 50's A neighbor caught one and brought it home, kept it in the bathtub. His four year old daughter decided to pet it and it bit her severely.. The ER doc called the police. the father was fined for endangering his child and for keeping a wildlife without a permit.

[Laura]

William, having grown up in Florida and raised my daughters here, I can honestly say that gators are the least of my worries when it comes to child rearing in this state.

FC, you're killing me, LOL!

Janet, they have a cell phone parking lot? Man, Disney thinks of everything... ;)

Naomi, I'd love to give you a tour down here. They are common, enough so that I think we take them for granted, till they actually decide to move. then we tend to run like hell. lol

Judy, especially if the golf ball is within a few feet of their mouth.

Hoss, scarify <---good one. Got to remember that.

Mom, I remember that story.

[me & my puppies]

Laura ~ I’m with you, I would rather spent a day outside in the sunshine with the company of my honey. BTW I’m glad, here in Jersey, our biggest worry is the deer eating our plants. I am thankful I don’t have to worry about my dogs being eaten up by a gator! My little LW is so curious she, surely, would be the first one to become a gator snack.

[Seamus]

Gators are something to certainly be respected. It's hard to imagine something that large and seemingly cumbersome as being capable of such lightning quick speeds!

Excellent shots Laura! I agree, hours in nature beats crowds hands down!