The young Alligator in the water circled around a few times but for reasons unknown didn’t make the climb to join his sibling and mom out of the water.
I have seen Alligators crawl over turtles on these ramps and I have seen them eat turtles. Life in the swamp is risky business but for this afternoon this group was getting along.
Below, the young Alligator stayed with his head lifted quite awhile; air exposure is part of how they regulate their temperature.
The Alligator never moved.
These were taken January 9th, at the end of a week when we had extreme cold for South Carolina and six inches of snow. Alligators slow their metabolic activity when it gets cold and all they need is to breathe.
The Little Blue Heron waded the entire length of the Alligator, poking in the water as he went, perhaps not even recognizing the gator was there.
A young Alligator has taken to draping himself on a rock quite near the shore of the pond in the rookery. Many local photographers have captured beautiful images with reflections, eye closeups and detail of his stripes over the last several weeks.
I couldn’t resist adding to his fame when the opportunity with these reflections presented itself.
I’m pretty sure the rock has been right there but this is the first time I’ve seen anything but a turtle on it. Some branches hanging over it have shifted, perhaps making it a more appealing perch. Plus, there is no worry about sharing.
Here is another view from a few feet away through the downed branches.
Taken 12/23/2017.
Click on any photo for larger view.
The movement was subtle, especially for a 15 foot Alligator. I’m guessing on the length–I could just say very long. This fellow was swimming quietly, but covering some distance.
He had places to go and wasn’t wasting any time getting there, swimming in a straight line from where I first spotted the movement towards an island where the Alligators often lounge at the edge of the water. And watch for wading birds to land or chicks to fall.
With the length of his back out of the water and a tree for reference you can see just how big
I didn’t see the second one until I was looking at the photos later. Tucked under the branches on the left, he didn’t move as the older and much larger beast went by.
Click on any photo for larger view.
The turtles are the most likely to be seen sharing space with other creatures around the swamp and ponds. They crave the sun just like the alligators on this reptile ramp and don’t show any fear in the presence of an alligator that could easily eat them.
Wading birds like this Great Egret like a sunny spot, too, and easily find a spot in between the turtles on a nearby ramp.
I don’t know what this “foot in the air” display from the turtle just to the right of the egret is all about, but a little further along in another small pond I saw it again, with both hind feet straight out.
There aren’t many wading birds around my favorite swamp right now but I still like to walk around it at least once a week and I always see something. Sunday it was reptiles. We have had some cold weather but Sunday was in the low 70s (about 21 degrees C) and turtles, lizards and alligators were out soaking up the sun.
Turtles were crawling out of the water. They often just move onto the bank of the swamp making it easy to retreat. This one was more ambitious and got a completely dry spot.
The Brown Anole did a nice job selecting his wooden perch for camouflage and full sun. When I passed he disappeared down a crack in the middle of this dead stump.
The Alligators care little about being seen. Usually they can sink and swim many feet away in seconds if they feel the need to escape. The dead tree limbs this one was in between might have slowed him down if a real predator was after him. He was content with this spot; he hadn’t moved when I returned by him twenty minutes later.
Click on any photo for larger view.
We recently toured the Tom Yawkey Wildlife Center, a 20,000 acre property on the coast of South Carolina that is managed by the state Department of Natural Resources. The Center is only accessible by crossing the Intracoastal Waterway by boat and only on pre-arranged tours.
The property is magnificent and includes some fresh water ponds that were glowing with reflected color and rippled by passing Alligators.
The Cormorants were content drying their wings on the Alligator ramp as a murky sun warmed the afternoon. A Great Blue Heron came along and disrupted their peace.
The Cormorants did not surrender their ground despite some posturing from the Great Blue.
An Alligator popped up to see what was happening as I continued along my walk.
One by one and without a sound or a ripple of the water these three Alligators swam out from a side canal into the main one that circles the old rice field.
And then there were four.
A sepia treatment makes the scene a little more creepy. Not sure of their intended direction we moved back down the dike towards the road so we wouldn’t get cut off if they came ashore.
Click any photo for larger view.
The Common Gallinules have reproduced much later in the summer than the other water birds in this area. Through the end of August we spotted a few families around the rice ponds and marsh areas.
Awkward, like most young, these chicks are covered with fuzz which picked up the duck weed, making them look even sillier. Members of the Rallidae family, they do swim even though their feet are not webbed and I usually see them just floating or wading.
One of the adults came closer when the chicks ventured into the deeper water to supervise.
At least one juvenile Alligator was nearby and while I don’t think they can catch or eat even the small Gallinule chicks, I’m sure mom wasn’t far away.
