big day

I was out photographing the birds on the river this morning when finally the alligator came into view for purposes of getting  a decent photo of him---
first the morning river

then the anhinga that caught my attention

then some gator photos- I would estimate that he was about eight feet long from nose to tail end... maybe slightly more but it is hard to tell - he got quite close but most of him was under water so I could only really estimate from his head when he was nearest to me...

so finally - after waiting for him all last season in Jan and Feb of 2011 - he shows up on December 31st 2011 to visit.... pretty darn cool!