Alligator Nest?

Late afternoon at the refuge. Beth spotted this gator close to shore. I think it had a nest and was keeping close watch. After reading information about nesting season.. it could be a possibility.

Alligators breed once a year. Courtship begins in early spring and reaches a peak during May. Males bellow in choruses or chain reactions to advertise their prowess and attract potential mates, but females make the final choice.

During courtship, male alligators can be very aggressive toward other males or toward humans. Mated pairs are frequently seen swimming or sunning together by mid-May; the male is the larger of the two. By the end of June, the pair separates and the female assumes her exclusive duties of nest building and guarding.

An alligator nest is a pile of rotting grass, other vegetation and mud. The pile is 3 1/2 to 6 feet across and 1 to 2 feet high, sitting in a site 13 to 18 feet across that has been cleared of vegetation by the female. By the first week in July, she lays a clutch of 20 to 70 cylindrical eggs. The eggs are 3 to 3 1/2 inches long, about 1 1/2 inches in diameter, and are buried 3 to 14 inches deep in the nests. Incubation takes about 65 days.

The female alligator stays close to guard the eggs from raiding raccoons, skunks and opossums. After the eggs hatch in late summer, the pod of baby alligators will stay together through their first winter and often through their second winter as well. The mother alligator stays close to her pod of babies, protecting them from male alligators, herons and humans.

Baby alligators must feed themselves. They eat minnows crayfish, snails, insects and tadpoles. They grow 9 to 10 inches each year for the first five years. As they mature, their diet expands to include fish, turtles, snakes, frogs, waterfowl, wading birds, raccoons, carrion and just about anything they can catch. By six years of age, they are mature and ready to breed.

WARNING: A female alligator will protect her family. Never approach a pile of rotting grass. Never approach a pod of baby alligators.

Love and Respect

Beth and I went to a marriage conference recently. The message was on love and respect based on Ephesians 5:33. The conference was jammed with information and the speakers delivered a message that is almost forgotten in today's society. Husbands should love their wives but wives should also respect their husbands. Say what? Yes, we've all heard the submission verses for our wives but they probably don't mean what you think. Respect plays an important role in a marital relationship. Statistics show that husbands would rather a wife that respects him over a wife that loves him. Both would be best but respect is preferred. The more he is respected, the more he loves his wife and the more he loves his wife the more she respects. It was a very profound and meaningful message. The conference was located in Cordova, TN at the infamous Bellvue Baptist church. We went with a few couples from our church and had an enjoyable weekend.

I highly recommend the book written by Dr.Emerson Eggerich, "Love and Respect". I give it a 5 star rating for the best in meaningful application. Beth and I have been married for 27 years and I have found this message to be one of the best. We've learned so much already and found the principals useful.