Alligator

An American Alligator sunning on a log in Bayou Black.

Yesterday I saw my first wild alligator of 2013 in the Bayou Black area of the Terrebonne Parish marsh.  It was a medium size reptile sunning on a log in the late afternoon sun.  After a string of cold days it was about 72 degrees warm and I am sure it did not want to jump back in the cold water until the sun went down.

It certainly is not spring yet and I am glad, for we need a good winter to knock back the multitude of exotic aquatic plants that are terrorizing our wetlands.  The signs are there though, with days getting longer, the yellow top is blooming on some of the spoil banks.  In Baton Rouge the Japanese magnolias bloom and many restaurants are serving up crawfish. Hold off, let us have a little more winter.