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American Alligator

Alligator mississippiensis

Description:

Two alligators, about 4 feet long (very rough estimate). Hard to see in these photos, because they are mostly submerged and it was getting dark. With just their eyes and snouts sticking out of the water, they look like logs. One of them started to swim while I was watching them.

Habitat:

Pond on a golf course on Hilton Head. This was a large pond, with an island full of nesting cormorants and egrets in the middle of it. Reeds and tall grass around banks. I spotted them at dusk, on a day which was warm but not hot (probably about 72 degrees by then. High had been 79.).

Notes:

I'd been looking for gators all day and was thrilled to find some. It's wonderful that the American alligator has made a comeback and is no longer considered endangered. The locals at Hilton Head mostly just let them be and exercise caution.

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1 Comment

alicelongmartin
alicelongmartin 11 years ago

Nice, and your notes are interesting.

Mandy Hollman
Spotted by
Mandy Hollman

Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, USA

Spotted on Apr 21, 2012
Submitted on Apr 23, 2012

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