June 17, 201610 yr Where are you all getting information that gators "go back later" to eat their pray. That isn't true at all... As long as it fits a narrative, facts are optional.
June 17, 201610 yr According to The University of Florida...WEC203/UW230: Living with Alligators: A Florida Reality When prey animals are too large to be swallowed whole (deer, wild hogs), the alligator will stash its kill underwater, pinning it under a submerged log or anywhere it can be wedged in for safe keeping. The alligator must then wait until the prey animal's hide is rotted and soft enough for the alligator to tear off chunks. Alligator teeth are designed for crushing and for a strong grip on prey. They are not sharp teeth like a bobcat or a wolf have for tearing meat.
June 17, 201610 yr According to The University of Florida...WEC203/UW230: Living with Alligators: A Florida Reality A baby isn't the size of a deer, so that wouldn't have happened in this case...
June 17, 201610 yr From the same article: Their prey selection seems to be determined primarily by size. An alligator's diet depends on what is available to it, which means it will eat just about anything including fish, frogs, birds, turtles, insects, snakes, small mammals, other alligators, white-tailed deer, wild hogs, and sometimes people's pets. Once the prey is caught, it is typically swallowed whole. Alligators have tremendously powerful jaws that can crush turtle shells and the bones of small mammals.
June 17, 201610 yr A baby isn't the size of a deer, so that wouldn't have happened in this case...We also don't know the exact size of the alligator either. A child may have been too large for this alligator...either way the narrative that Alligators don't "go back later" isn't true...but maybe the UNIVERSITY of FLORIDA hasn't really spent much time studying Gators and THEY don't know what THEY are talking about.
June 17, 201610 yr From the same article: Their prey selection seems to be determined primarily by size. An alligator's diet depends on what is available to it, which means it will eat just about anything including fish, frogs, birds, turtles, insects, snakes, small mammals, other alligators, white-tailed deer, wild hogs, and sometimes people's pets. Once the prey is caught, it is typically swallowed whole. Alligators have tremendously powerful jaws that can crush turtle shells and the bones of small mammals. That still doesn't mean that in some cases they don't stash their prey...which they do.
June 17, 201610 yr We also don't know the exact size of the alligator either. A child may have been too large for this alligator...either way the narrative that Alligators don't "go back later" isn't true...but maybe the UNIVERSITY of FLORIDA hasn't really spent much time studying Gators and THEY don't know what THEY are talking about. Any gator big enough to attack a baby and drag it away from its parents would be big enough to swallow it.
June 17, 201610 yr That still doesn't mean that in some cases they don't stash their prey...which they do. You're right. They stash large mammals, not small ones.
June 17, 201610 yr Any gator big enough to attack a baby and drag it away from its parents would be big enough to swallow it. So why do you think it didn't eat him? You think the parents drown him and faked the gator attack? You think the gator doesn't eat dead food and that's why it spit him out?
June 17, 201610 yr So why do you think it didn't eat him? You think the parents drown him and faked the gator attack? You think the gator doesn't eat dead food and that's why it spit him out? I'm questioning the entire event to be honest. The only thing we know for sure is that a tragedy took place losing the child. Other than that, it's up in the air, IMO.
June 17, 201610 yr I'm questioning the entire event to be honest. The only thing we know for sure is that a tragedy took place losing the child. Other than that, it's up in the air, IMO. OK, I don't think there was anything nefarious in this case...especially considering there were witnesses. As for the not eating the child, there was an alligator expert on TV that said he wasn't surprised that the Alligator didn't eat the boy. Saying something along the lines of could have spit it out due to not recognizing it as a food source the same way sharks will mouth a swimmer and let them go when they realize they aren't a seal.
June 17, 201610 yr OK, I don't think there was anything nefarious in this case...especially considering there were witnesses. Have any of the witnesses spoken out yet, or are we just told there were witnesses?
June 17, 201610 yr Have any of the witnesses spoken out yet, or are we just told there were witnesses?I believe the police said they have spoken to witnesses...they are also on vacation so they may not be running out to meet with TMZ. According to a local news report witnesses tried to help but it was over so quickly they weren't able to. I'm sure at some point one of the witnesses will run to TMZ or some other outlet to tell their story. But if I was there and saw it, I wouldn't run to the media to relive that story. I'd tell the authorities what I saw and try to get past it.
June 17, 201610 yr Any gator big enough to attack a baby and drag it away from its parents would be big enough to swallow it. The witness reports say the gator was 4-7 feet long which is a small gator. A 2 year old would be almost 3 feet tall so I don't think that size gator, if true, could swallow the child whole.
June 17, 201610 yr The witness reports say the gator was 4-7 feet long which is a small gator. A 2 year old would be almost 3 feet tall so I don't think that size gator, if true, could swallow the child whole. When the scale of the range could have the animal double in size, you can't put much stock into it, IMO.
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