Even Alligators have a hard time dealing with the thick mud in a marsh. Around here it’s called Pluff Mud. Hundreds of years of sediment along the bottom. When stirred up a bad low tide smells good compared to Pluff.
This gator was moving along the edge of a dike, and having a hard time of it.
Interesting feet these critters have.
One of the first shots of an Alligator for the day. It was still early to try longer distance shots so I went with opportunities right along the sides of the dikes.
In this image there were no overhanging trees so the low sun highlighted all this gators scales and scute’s. Each spike on an alligator’s back is called a scute. Inside the scute is a bone that helps protect the alligator from attack and regulate heat.
A pretty and bright day at a marsh in the ACE Basin.
The water was still high then, yet lower than most of this year.
All throughout the water in this image are black shapes, floating along the top. A quick count shows approximately 30 alligator heads.
Best viewed large.
A wide, and fun shot. Best viewed large for the impact.
My count of this scene was 35 heads. That was just this angle.
So even though they rarely are an issue, not a place for a swim.
American Alligators, ACE Basin.
A little change here. Some open marshes and bright blue sky.
This was taken on a dike, old rice fields, marshland, on either side.
Donnelley WMA, ACE Basin, South Carolina.
A quick look at the stairs to the water.
Nobody I know will go down there without looking. Actually nobody wants to go down there at all.
I believe they are Brown Water Snakes, just a few locals.
Beidler Forest, Four Hole Swamp, South Carolina.
All it takes is a short time with some sun.
I don’t know where they go, but it can’t be far.
Yellow Sliders getting warm.
Dirt roads, dike / trunks, and a few farm fences are about the only man made things. You can find a few old wooden ramps. This was private land years ago. I think this Heron is on a hunting boat dock that goes over the water about 2 meters at most. (I step out on it carefully once in a while)
The Tricolored Heron this time of year can disappear in the dry reeds. They just blend in perfectly.
I took this shot, with the ramp, to test a new lens. I like the shot, and the lens. Not a ‘pro’ lens by any means, but it filled a gap at 80-150 mm.
