Today we are in Fort Lauderdale, and we booked a tour that got us a private airboat ride in the Everglades.

There was also a “show” put on by one of the rangers at the park, which was mostly him telling us a bit about the biology and behavior of alligators, and feeding bits of chicken to the four gators in captivity there that are habituated to humans (and can’t be released). The gators know and respond to their names, and will walk up to the ranger with the bucket and sit there with their mouths open, waiting for food to be tossed in.

I also got to hold a baby (2 year old) gator.

Then we went in the (very loud-they supplied earplugs) airboat ride, and saw a lot of birds–herons, egrets, ospreys, anhinga, cormorants, turkey vultures, and a purple gallinule. We saw several gators plus the places where some gators had been shortly before the noisy airboat reached them. I also think I saw a turtle slide into the water, but it was so fast it was gone before it really registered with me.

We head home tomorrow.

Let’s play Spot the Gator.

Did you see it?