iStockphoto / slowmotiongli
Audio By Carbonatix
A rare ‘congregation‘ of alligators was seen in Stephen C. Foster State Park, on the west side of the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. Over 300 alligators were seen huddled up together in a rarely seen natural phenomenon.
Park officials said this rare occurrence happens just once or twice a year. Hundreds of alligators show up in large numbers and by the morning they are gone.
This occurred right near a boat ramp with rentals available, but according to park officials it didn’t scare off people renting boats. If anything, I would have expected this suffocating ‘heat dome’ sitting over Florida to have done that and not the alligators.
Rare ‘Congregation’ Brings Hundreds Of Alligators Together Before They All Disappeared
University of Georgia Coastal Ecology Lab researcher Mark Hoog caught wind of the congregation of alligators and made his way to Stephen C. Foster State Park to investigate. Hoog said that “hundreds of alligators congregated on the west side of the Swamp this past Saturday.”
He added “We had heard about and seen photos of this event before, but this was the first time we were able to witness it in person, document it, and try to understand why this event occurs.”
The official Stephen Foster State Park account in Georgia shared a clip on Instagram Reels showing the hundreds of alligators gathered together:
The alligators were active
Mark Hoog said the alligators were swimming around, catching fish and one turtle, which caused a bit of drama among the alligators.
Describing the phenomenon, he said “The number … was highest in the early morning and late in the evening. However, it did not seem like they left and came back, but rather hunkered down on the bottom during the hottest part of the day, periodically coming to the surface for air and then remaining on the surface when the temperatures were cooler.”
All of that was shared in a video posted by he University of Georgia Coastal Ecology Lab:
As a born and raised Floridian who grew up around alligators and who has been to the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge many times on camping trips, I have always wanted to see this in person. Alas, seeing a congregation of alligators up close has eluded me.
It didn’t seem to be about risky business
According to the researcher, there were no signs this was part of a large alligator mating ritual.
In his video, Hoog said “there was very little bellowing and no courtship displays. … It seems to be some combination of resource availability (food) and environmental factors (water level and temperature).”
The first instinct of many is to assume this was a mating ritual, with this many wild animals in such close proximity, but there was no evidence to suggest that was the case.
Rather, low water levels and concentration of food sources is what is believed to drive alligators together in large numbers enough to constitute a congregation. Environmental stress could also be a contributing factor, according to a study published in the Journal of Zoological and Botanical Gardens back in 2022.
Content shared from brobible.com.