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This second specimen of an American alligator is significantly larger than the first in this series. It's only about a foot longer but much heavier, and quite likely much older.

I got back out to Paynes Prairie today. The water level is dropping rapidly. Generally speaking when the water supply decreases the gators become more and more concentrated, which makes sense; they all need water.

Just the same as the water decreases so does their usual food source - fish and turtles. Of course (high water level or low) a lot of deer, raccoons, opossum, dogs and the like find themselves in harm's way by just taking a drink in what looks like peaceful water.

During serious drought, when the gator holes actually begin to dry up, gators hike (the small ones first) - in pursuit of water. I once saw one crossing a two-lane black-top in the afternoon more than a mile from water, and on one occasion found one in a gopher tortoise hole seeking refuge from the summer's noon-day sun. Of course he might have been looking for a snack as well - more than a half mile from the closest water, which was the Suwanee River.

Ciao!