Uninvited guest wanted to stay for supper. EEEEK!!

[PondmaninAL]

You know, I wanted to build a in ground here but something convinced me to just keep the tanks and troughs. Well, that has paid off twice. The first time was when H. Fay came easing through and made a lake around my ponds. The second time was today. I am just about done with the big trough and my wife came out to have a cigarette and have a look at the progress. I was filling it today to see if the drain is going to hold. Well, we were standing beside the trough talking when she sees something moving near by. At first, she thought it was Arnold, our resident armadillo but then realized that it was to long. Instead, it was this little fella.





WOW! Where did it come from? The direction suggests that it was from the woods behind us but there is not a pond or any other body of water that I know of. The trapper said they can travel for miles. He also told me that eventually it would have found a way into the stock tank with the fish. The whole hour and a half that it was here was spent roaming around the ponds, looking for a way to get in with the fish. He actually climbed into a kiddie pool that had water in it and took a break. Here is one more shot with the trapper holding it. The camera malfunctioned.



Happy ponding,
Scott

[miguynmkoi]

Don't you just hate unwanted guests?!!    Scary in your situation. Yikes!!!  What happens to the critter now?

[KatFish]

Good thing he didn't get sushi!    Your wife has a good eye!

[Argos5]

A famous phrase seems to apply to ponds..."Build it and they will come."

[PondmaninAL]

Annette, it was only about 3' long and the trapper said that they would let it go in a pond or lake somewhere. It was happy here and I wouldn't have minded if it wanted to stay for a while, except in the stock tank, but we have a dog and she is just way to curious and we can't afford the vet bill right now. That guy holding it was as big as I was before I started losing weight but he was pretty quick with his hands. I would have ended up with a gator attached to my arm. If my wife hadn't of called the trapper, I would have lead it into the chicken pen with a kiddie  pool to swim in. I'd always dreamed of having a pet gator, right after I stopped dreaming of having a pet grizzly bear.

Happy ponding,
Scott

[reddad35]

 If he still has hands and hes a gator trapper then he has quick hands. I am a Land Surveyor and lived and worked in florida for 19 years. That little fella is a baby. Alot of times big bull gators will force the little guys to try to find a new home. They can walk for miles n search of the right place. Your ponds would have been a snacking area until he moved on again. Good thing you caught him before he got in. They are good at hiding and would of had a nice feast.

[Jerry]

Amazing!  How far north have these things gone?

[barb]

Wow!  I'm glad you found it and were able to relocate it.

[LeeAnne151]

I think it is cute!       But, not in your stock tank.  Hope the little fella has a good life in a wild pond.

[tweetybaby2005]

Eeeekkk, I would freak out if I found a gator (baby or not) in my yard.  I realize I don't like a lot of critters such as spiders, insects, rats, snakes, etc.  Yet, I like pool of water, i.e. pond, that attracts all of them.  Go figure!!

Kuan

[terrikokopelli]

Thank God I don't have to worry about gators in Mass. I have enough to worry about with the herons here.

[PondmaninAL]

Amazing!  How far north have these things gone?

Jerry, I'm not sure but I do know that south Alabama and Louisiana have them. They are all over the state of Florida. I even saw one while on the riverboat ride at Disney World. South Florida has even more crocodileans. The Everglades are not only home to the gators but also to the American crocodile.

Happy ponding,
Scott

[bunny56lbc]

It's a good thing you're wife see it ! It would've been bad enough if it got into one of you're tank's whitout you knowing it . Then you come along & stick you're hand/arm in ....ewww I don't even want to think about it ! Scarey...

bonnie

[marla]

With visitors like that I think I'd be sticking to above ground ponds.  Happy the one I have in my pond is a fake, and I don't have to worry about the real thing.