Life and Death Drama in the Wetlands (imgs)

[zackiedawg]

I FINALLY got back out this weekend for the first time in over a month for some shooting. It was miserably hot, but at least the weather was mostly clear. I was out birding primarily, but I thought I'd share something else from that trip which was amazing to watch.

I witnessed an alligator lash out at a turtle for his dinner! I missed the initial strike, but as soon as it happened, I spun my A300 with my Tamron 200-500 around at 500mm and started shooting. I was probably 100 yards away, so I had to do some heavy cropping even at 500mm, and he was in some mixed light and shadow which meant it was hard to get a fast enough shutter speed...but it was one of those wow moments to witness, and I was glad to have enough lens to get the action.

Here's the moment just after the initial strike, when the gator stood upright out of the water to reposition his bite on the turtle:

After that, the gator actually sat for a few minutes just holding onto the turtle (as reptiles tend to do...lots of pauses in their actions before resuming). That gave me a chance to reposition slightly down the trail for a somewhat side view.

Here's the remainder of the sequence I took from the side...I was in burst mode, but deleted alot of the excess frames. Basically, he's tenderizing, biting, lifting to swallow, and then gnawing off a chunk of the turtle during this sequence:

The birding wasn't too bad that day either...here's a few of the highlights:

Red-winged blackbird:

Green heron:

Anhinga:

Sandhill crane:

Water-ballet ducks:

Comments, questions, critique welcome.

 

[jann1033]

poor turtle( although better him than your leg ), cool water ballet ducks

 

[WillCAD]

Holy Cowsills! That's an amazing sequence, Justin!

Do you often go birding in gator territory? I'm from non-gator land, so I'd be scared stiff to even be within 500mm camera shot of a feeding gator.

 

[DisneySuiteFreak]

poor turtle( although better him than your leg ), cool water ballet ducks

Ha-ha Jann, the first thought that came to my mind was "Poor turtle."

OP the birding photos are lovely! I think the next lens on my list will have to be something that gives me a zoom range like that. Was it handheld?

 

[My2Girls66]

Wow! Amazing! Great shots!
That looks like one BIG gator
I thought poor turtle at first also but like my mom says when a fox gets one of their chickens- he/she has to eat too.

 

[zackiedawg]

poor turtle( although better him than your leg ), cool water ballet ducks

Thanks Jann...I agree - I like turtles too. But I'm OK with natural stuff like this. Those turtles eat frogs, fish, and anything else small they can get their mouths on...so it seems fair that something be able to eat it. Circle of Life and all!

Holy Cowsills! That's an amazing sequence, Justin!
Do you often go birding in gator territory? I'm from non-gator land, so I'd be scared stiff to even be within 500mm camera shot of a feeding gator.

I do. Actually, I don't have much of a choice! In South Florida, if there's a spot where there are birds, there are very likely alligators too. We mostly have wading birds that like the watery areas inland, and that's where gators live (when they're not in the canals, ponds, golf courses, or swimming pools). In general, most wetlands and nature areas for the public allow you to walk the levees that stretch around the perimeters of the swamp - so you're a bit above the waterline and have a good view if something is up ahead on the trail. Also, many have elevated walkways or boardwalks too in some sections to make it safe anytime. Even when you are out on the trails with no protection, gators rarely consider people to be on the menu unless they're really desperate or we do something irretrievably stupid to make ourselves just too tempting (like the drunk kid who jumped in a swamp at night and...SURPRISE! Got bit by an alligator. Or the lady in Sanibel killed by a large gator after spending nearly 3 hours standing in brackish water up to her waist trimming trees where the swamp abuts her house).

Ha-ha Jann, the first thought that came to my mind was "Poor turtle."
OP the birding photos are lovely! I think the next lens on my list will have to be something that gives me a zoom range like that. Was it handheld?

Thank you. I have shot the lens half handheld, and half on tripod/monopod. For the alligator sequence, I was using my tripod as a monopod to steady the camera. For the anhinga and ducks photos, I was handheld. The red-winged blackbird I believe was monopodded. The lens is large, but it is possible to shoot handheld...though usually better when shooting in the 200-300mm range. At 500mm, you could do it, but you're better off with at least a monopod.

I often carry the camera mounted to the tripod, but with the legs folded. I can carry the lens slung over my shoulder and holding the extended tripod legs in front of me, and quickly unsling the camera and put it down monopod style for a fast shot, while still getting decent stability. I also get a little assistance with the sensor-based image stabilization on my camera.

Wow! Amazing! Great shots!
That looks like one BIG gator
I thought poor turtle at first also but like my mom says when a fox gets one of their chickens- he/she has to eat too.

So true! Thank you for the compliments.

 

[MICKEY88]

WOW !! they are all great shots although personally I find the bird shots kind of anti-climactic after scrolling thru the gator shots..

that makes for an interesting test,, view all the pictures ..wait 5-10 minutes then think of what picture comes to mind first..

I'm guessing for most people it's the gator.



do you ever take other photographers with you, it would be awesome to see where you go

 

[zackiedawg]

We're lucky enough to have two of the absolute best birding/wetlands preserves just around the corner. These places are very well known, and are frequented by photographers from all over the country and from other countries as well. The funny thing is that they're smallish places - no more than a few miles, and right in the western suburbs of town - just to the west we've got hundreds and hundreds of miles of Everglades national parkland and various state reserves...but why hunt through hundreds of miles of swamp to find the animals when you can see every species in less than 2 miles?!

Anyplace else in Florida, walking around with a DSLR with a 200-500mm lens attached to a 6.5' tripod would get attention like you're some kind of Nat Geo photographer. In these places, I'm usually the baby of the group - lost amongst a sea of massive white or camoflauge-wrapped 1000mm+ lenses on gimballed tripods! The lenses you see in this place on any given day will blow your mind.

So there are a lot of photographers visiting. Happily, the places are fully public (read: FREE!)...so you can go as often as you like, any time between sunrise and sunset. I've taken a few friends locally there to go shooting, and when a fellow board member on a photo board from Canada was down visiting, I met up with him and took him there. I'd be happy to go shooting with anyone at these places - always feel free to drop me a PM or e-mail if you're in the area, and I'll meet you and head out for some shooting!

 

[Steve's Girl]

That is a pretty cool series of shots. But, you are way more brave than I am!

 

[MICKEY88]

We're lucky enough to have two of the absolute best birding/wetlands preserves just around the corner. These places are very well known, and are frequented by photographers from all over the country and from other countries as well. The funny thing is that they're smallish places - no more than a few miles, and right in the western suburbs of town - just to the west we've got hundreds and hundreds of miles of Everglades national parkland and various state reserves...but why hunt through hundreds of miles of swamp to find the animals when you can see every species in less than 2 miles?!

Anyplace else in Florida, walking around with a DSLR with a 200-500mm lens attached to a 6.5' tripod would get attention like you're some kind of Nat Geo photographer. In these places, I'm usually the baby of the group - lost amongst a sea of massive white or camoflauge-wrapped 1000mm+ lenses on gimballed tripods! The lenses you see in this place on any given day will blow your mind.

So there are a lot of photographers visiting. Happily, the places are fully public (read: FREE!)...so you can go as often as you like, any time between sunrise and sunset. I've taken a few friends locally there to go shooting, and when a fellow board member on a photo board from Canada was down visiting, I met up with him and took him there. I'd be happy to go shooting with anyone at these places - always feel free to drop me a PM or e-mail if you're in the area, and I'll meet you and head out for some shooting!

darn too bad we didn't have this talk before I spent 3 weeks in florida last month....LOL

I just might take you up on that offer next trip down I'd love to get some good gator shots...

 

[zackiedawg]

Definitely feel free to. Just PM me a few weeks before you're coming down and we'll figure it out. Your 700 + Minolta 100-300 should do very well out there.

 

[ukcatfan]

When I moved to FL, I was told by just about everyone that if you cannot see the bottom of the water in FL then it HAS a gator in it! Pretty good words to live by if you ask me.

 

[Gdad]

Wow! Excellent series Justin- well done.

 

[mtdewlarissa]

cool photos

 

[WVDisGeek]

Nice shots! Brings back memories of visiting my grandparents in Louisiana and visiting Sabine Wildlife Preserve near the Texas border. Elevated walkways and observation towers. Saw gators get nutria (a REALLY large South American rat-like rodent) and snakes. Gained a VERY healthy respect for their power and quickness.

Very good to have a loooong lens for these shots!

 

[zackiedawg]

UKcatfan...sometimes there's a gator in it even when you can see the bottom!

Thanks Jeff and mtdewlarissa.

Long lenses definitely help, wvdisgeek. And I don't think too many people complain when a nutria gets eaten by a gator. Having lived in Louisiana for 4 years, I know they're not fond of those critters! They're even on the menu in some small towns!

 

[MICKEY88]

When I moved to FL, I was told by just about everyone that if you cannot see the bottom of the water in FL then it HAS a gator in it! Pretty good words to live by if you ask me.

based on the number of gators I saw in very shallow water at cape canaveral, I'm thinking ,if the water isn't in a bottle or a drinking glass, there might be a gator in it..LOL

 

[bnorm27]

Nice shots zackiedawg. Very dramatic. I can almost hear the National Geographic music playing in the background!