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Article: CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON.(observing alligators in the Everglades)
- Article from:
- The Evening Standard (London, England)
- Article date:
- March 1, 1999
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1999 Carus Publishing Co. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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It's approaching noon one fine February morning in South Florida, and I'm in Everglades National Park watching an American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) "sleeping" on a slab of limestone near the swamp's edge. For hours now, I've been watching a slit behind the alligator's eye (its ear), two tiny crescents at the tip of its snout (its nostrils), and its eyelids, to see how the animal reacts to any noise or nearby activity. Although alligators appear to be sound asleep, their senses are primed and alert.
A ripple appears in the water near the alligator's head. An ear flap opens, nostrils flare. Another ripple, this one is closer. The alligator's eyelids ...