Alligators are amphibious (but not AMPHIBIANS) and are in the water most of the time. Therefore it is worthy of note when they are on land, especially
when they are doing more than just absorbing solar energy. Here is yet another page of terrestrial alligator antics.

02/02/2025 Here are some interesting events brought about the the very warm weather (about 70° F after noon) at Brazos Bend State Park. The
morning was still cool as this lone alligator cruised in 40-Acre Lake at 9:00am.


About 11:00 am, an alligator was cruising in Pilant Lake near the Elm Lake end of the Spillway Trail.  It stopped at a gap in the cover, with its snout near the bank.I waited to
 see if it would come up and cross the trail.  It walked up onto the grass and rested--which they often do before they continue across.  When it started to walk, I shot a quick
 burst of photos, then went to video to record its stately passage across the trail. One of the watching visitors had asked the very common question, "How long is that alligator?"
I had motioned the folks in the background over when I saw the alligator come up. Other visitors came up behind me. Since almost everyone has at least a camera phone,
I suggest that everyone pay special attention to capture when the alligator's head and tail are near the edges of the trail.


We're going to use that image to estimate the size of this wonderful animal! Note that when the alligator's tail was touching one edge of the trail, its snout extended *past*
the other edge of the trail. Now we'll guess the size of this alligator, with the help of my "walking staff". It's about 6 feet (1.8 meters) My staff extends a little past the center of
 the trail, leaving a big gap to the other side. I prefer lower estimates, so I'll call that an additional 4-foot gap. Added to the original 6 feet of the stick; that's TEN feet long (and
 the alligator's nose extended past the far edge). So 10-12 feet long ( 3 - 3.6 meters).  WOW!      
I had placed the stick where the alligator had crossed. In the photos I could verify by checking this thin line and the "pebble" as reference.  But when I checked when the
alligator started to cross, I couldn't find the pebble. I discovered that the alligator had "conjured" the object with some sleight-of-foot. It took me a while to discover this, so I
am sharing it here. Even though I was pretty sure I'd placed the stick properly, I was happy when I could verify it with the images. It's easier to see in the edited video here.

While I was distracted, the alligator surfaced, and started back the way it had come. I shot a few bursts of photos as I talked with the visitors. The Grebe briefly followed the gator, but  lost interest. Another
 Grebe approached from the other direction, but both Grebes lost interest. The alligator ignored them both.

. I did capture some very short video, shown here.

11/24/2024, 11/29/2024, 12/01/2024  "Where have all the alligators gone?",  has been a common question from visitors at Brazos Bend State Park over the last few
years. We've experienced drought conditions through 2 summers, and then we finally got good rain after hurricane Beryl in August, 2024. The alligators moved to areas within the
park that hid them from our view. Even after our "good" rain, water levels in the park have not gone back to normal. But the plant life sure came back! The lakes become covered with
floating plants-mostly Water Hyacinth; and the Giant Cutgrass has grown up around the shorelines. The alligators (and all the other wildlife) are now adjusting to the high-density
vegetation, and fewer good clear banks for basking. I've noticed cleared areas starting to form in spots that the alligators favor. The tall cutgrass is still around them, so there are
narrow "viewing windows" in the growth where-if you look carefully-you might see an alligator getting some sun.
11/24/2024  I'd heard alligator "croaks" while I was standing near pier #7. I found these two alligators soon after. Alligator basking spots became harder to find after the rain in August. 
Preferred basking spots are open to sunshine, and have a gradual slope for easy movement out of the water.  At this time of year, the South sides of these islands get sun for most of
 the day.  So this was a good basking spot.  One of the alligators seemed uncomfortable with sharing, so it was making the croaking sound. That's what I'd heard. Park visitors also
 heard it, so I only filmed a little as I explained the situation for them. I did capture some very short video, shown here.


We were on the trail, about 50 yards away from the gators on the island, so their sounds didn't carry well. The second gator was easier to see when it moved. It demonstrated why they
 prefer a gradual slope as it eased out of the water. Listen carefully and you'll hear the other gator croak behind my voice. (sorry about that).   

 
Another large group of visitors appeared so I gave up on trying to film any more. Another gator appeared and changed everything around by trying to claim the same spot. Unfortunately
no photos of that. But I got to watch along with a large group of park visitors.


11/29/2024 and 12/01/2024  I found one of these "alligator windows" by walking about 70 yards East of Pier #7 and looking across at the island. Two alligators were there. I didn't stay
 for long, but took a few pictures just to show the alligators in the window.    A week later, there were two alligators using the same spot! I'm pretty sure that at least a few alligators have
dens dug under the islands, and that the largest alligators probably sit through winter there. If conditions favor any basking, the gators just come up for a while. If you compare the
wider view between 11/29 and 12/01, you may notice how much the water has cleared. The first picture shows the mats of Water Hyacinth that are covering parts of the lake. They are
dead or dying, but still float. Since they float, changes in wind direction can blow the mats from one side of the lake to the other. The wind had blown the mats away during the week.


08/20/2023  After the second dry summer in a row, I started watching an alligator moving through mud at 9am. It was working towards the water visible in the center.  It
would move a bit, then rest. In situations like this, I wonder what caused the alligator to move in this direction. Did it see the water? Did it remember that it's usually deeper
 this way? Was it "going downhill"?  The fourth image shows birds (I think the larger one is a juvenile Gallinule), moving easily on the surface of the mud.  I've condensed
about 90 minutes of this experience into this 10 minute video.