# Death Roll



## wvdawg (Jul 12, 2011)

Greetings from Florida.  Saw something yesterday for the first time ever - wish I had been a bit closer.
This alligator was doing a death roll to rip off a hunk of meat from a cow carcass.  He stopped when the airboat got too close, but he tried to swim off with a mouth full of leg!


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## carver (Jul 12, 2011)

Nice capture Dennis


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## SarahFair (Jul 13, 2011)

Interesting..
Was the cow farm right there at the water?


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## Hoss (Jul 13, 2011)

Oh for a bigger lens at times like that.  Very cool captures.

Hoss


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## carver (Jul 13, 2011)

Thought you would pull a "Swamp people" on that gator Dennis.


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## Crickett (Jul 13, 2011)

carver said:


> Thought you would pull a "Swamp people" on that gator Dennis.



"Shoot'im Jacob, Jacob shoot'im" Love that show!

Cool capture Dennis!


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## leo (Jul 14, 2011)

Neat sequence, looks like it is drawing a crowd


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## quinn (Jul 14, 2011)

Very cool!i think you could have jumped in the water and gotten alittle closer....they were busy!


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## Swamprat (Jul 16, 2011)

SarahFair said:


> Interesting..
> Was the cow farm right there at the water?



To answer your question lots of the bigger ranches will just run fences out into the river, marshes, and lakes until they get into deep water. The fences keep the cows in but they still have access to the water and vice-versa the gators have access to land.

While running airboats in the St. Johns River you will see quite a few cows out in the marshes feeding on aquatic plants and to cool off or escape the flies.

Most of the time the gators won't bother a full grown cow unless it is sick or injured but will take calfs quite often. One rancher lost about a dozen calfs to a 13-14' gator living in a pond. The gator eventually got lead poisoning.

Sorry for the long winded post.....great photos of something you don't get to see to often in the wild.


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## cornpile (Jul 17, 2011)

He found the beef,that is a great action series.You were in the right spot.


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## Melissa (Jul 17, 2011)

holy cow! awesome!


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## wvdawg (Jul 17, 2011)

SarahFair said:


> Interesting..
> Was the cow farm right there at the water?



Yep - the river winds through the pasture lands - only about 5 feet above sea level here so the ranchers take advantage of the open space.


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## wvdawg (Jul 17, 2011)

leo said:


> Neat sequence, looks like it is drawing a crowd



I think several gators hang out close to this spot - I saw at least eight close by Leo.


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## wvdawg (Jul 17, 2011)

quinn said:


> Very cool!i think you could have jumped in the water and gotten alittle closer....they were busy!



I tried walking across their backs Quinn, but then I couldn't hold the camera steady!  So I retreated to the boat!


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## wvdawg (Jul 17, 2011)

Swamprat said:


> To answer your question lots of the bigger ranches will just run fences out into the river, marshes, and lakes until they get into deep water. The fences keep the cows in but they still have access to the water and vice-versa the gators have access to land.
> 
> While running airboats in the St. Johns River you will see quite a few cows out in the marshes feeding on aquatic plants and to cool off or escape the flies.
> 
> ...



Great explanation Swamprat - this was taken on the St. Johns near Titusville.  I think this cow died of natural causes and was then found by the gators.


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## wvdawg (Jul 17, 2011)

Melissa said:


> holy cow! awesome!



Definitely a hole-y cow now!


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## wvdawg (Jul 17, 2011)

Thanks ya'll - definitely a neat thing to see!


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## Swamprat (Jul 17, 2011)

wvdawg said:


> Great explanation Swamprat - this was taken on the St. Johns near Titusville.  I think this cow died of natural causes and was then found by the gators.



Know that area well, sounds like you were off of Hwy 50....ran airboats from Volusia County South into Osceola County along the St. John's for several years.


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## wvdawg (Jul 17, 2011)

Swamprat said:


> Know that area well, sounds like you were off of Hwy 50....ran airboats from Volusia County South into Osceola County along the St. John's for several years.



Yep - Hwy 50 at Midway - about 5 miles west of I-95.


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