“And In This Corner…”

In between rain showers this afternoon I decided to head over to the marsh and see if anything was going on. As soon as I arrived I noticed these two alligators that clearly had issues with each other. I don’t know what set it off originally but they were involved in a major dispute over something, more then likely territory. As mating season approaches and emotions start to run high, arguments and disagreements are bound to happen. I watched these two go at it for close to half an hour before the whole thing just stopped. One floated off to lick his wounds and the other crawled up onto the bank at the edge of the pond right in front of me and went to sleep, he looked exhausted.

The other odd and interesting thing that occurred while all this was happening… as many as 12 other alligators came floating in and picked out spots in the water nearby as spectators to the battle. I have never seen behavior like this before and still wonder what was on their minds as they picked out front row seats to the event!

91 thoughts on ““And In This Corner…””

Gareth Rasberry on April 29, 2013 at 6:16 pm said:

Superb series of action shots, Phil!

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- Phil Lanoue on April 29, 2013 at 7:22 pm said:
  
  Thanks Gareth it was pretty cool to see.
  
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Ricky Simpson on April 29, 2013 at 6:40 pm said:

wow…I see the one guy drew blood. great shots Phil!

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- Phil Lanoue on April 29, 2013 at 7:24 pm said:
  
  Yeah these guys were going at it pretty good, could be a territorial dispute. Thanks for looking Ricky!
  
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thecasualphilosopher on April 29, 2013 at 6:49 pm said:

Stunning photographs. A photographer I am most definitely not. Really appreciate those for whom it’s an art. That appears to include you.

Came to your blog via your nomination at http://suburbanferndaleark.wordpress.com/ .

I shall visit here often.

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- Phil Lanoue on April 29, 2013 at 7:24 pm said:
  
  Thanks very much for your kind words and I appreciate the nomination!
  
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Becky cribb on April 29, 2013 at 7:08 pm said:

The pics and description is so very cool. I witnessed SImiliar action between two neighborhood cats once. Other cts came around and formed a circle several feet out. Not quite the same as you witnessed!

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- Phil Lanoue on April 29, 2013 at 7:25 pm said:
  
  Thank you very much for looking and commenting Becky!
  
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pixelspielerei on April 29, 2013 at 7:42 pm said:

Maybe they want to make love but they don’t know the rules? 😉

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:23 am said:
  
  That could be it, the rules they made up look rather dangerous though. 🙂
  
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Amy on April 29, 2013 at 8:01 pm said:

Pretty serious actions…

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:24 am said:
  
  Yeah these guys were not fooling around.
  
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Andrew on April 29, 2013 at 8:10 pm said:

WWF with teeth? Terrific photos Phil.

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:24 am said:
  
  Thanks Andrew, teeth were indeed being used. 🙂
  
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Mike Powell on April 29, 2013 at 9:37 pm said:

These are great shots, and a powerful reminder that the sleepy giants that you feature in a number of your postings can be deadly.

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:25 am said:
  
  I have to remind myself, they can go from sleeping to active instantly. Thanks for checking these out Mike.
  
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Molly Argo on April 29, 2013 at 9:46 pm said:

How cool this must have been to witness. Lucky for both of them that neither one was hurt bad, but I think I see some broken teeth on the closest one. What power these guys have in their jaws so that must have really hurt. We just got a baby Gator at the store about 1 foot long and he bit me when I was putting plants in his enclosure. Although it didn’t really hurt, even one so small had such force that it was hard to pry his little jaws open.These are fantastic photos by the way!

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:27 am said:
  
  Thanks Molly, I really appreciate you checking these out and glad you like them. What we could not believe was the crowd of spectators that arrived to watch the ‘show’. These guys were not fooling around that’s for sure.
  
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aldebaran on April 29, 2013 at 10:42 pm said:

wonder if it killed the other.

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:28 am said:
  
  We believe the other one swam away under the water. There were quite a few in the area and it was hard to tell after the battle was over.
  
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Phil Turner on April 29, 2013 at 10:49 pm said:

Looks like someone drew some blood in that first shot.

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:28 am said:
  
  Yes it sure did, that was the one that crawled up onto the bank later and you could see he was a bit cut up and bleeding still.
  
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ruthincolorado on April 29, 2013 at 10:59 pm said:

Wow! Love visiting the marsh with you, Phil. What a crazy scene!

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:29 am said:
  
  It was wild out there Ruth! Thanks for stopping by I appreciate your visit!
  
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Gunta on April 29, 2013 at 11:21 pm said:

Yikes! 😀

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:30 am said:
  
  Yikes is right! I said something similar at the time which may have included Holy %$#* 😯
  
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edithlevyphotography on April 29, 2013 at 11:21 pm said:

I wouldn’t want to get in a fight with him. Great captures Phil.

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:31 am said:
  
  We were glad to stay out of it, as were all the spectators who arrived. Thanks Edith!
  
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Jeff | Planet Bell on April 29, 2013 at 11:36 pm said:

That is cool. You can even see blood in the top pic.

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:32 am said:
  
  Thanks much for looking and commenting Jeff, I appreciate it!
  
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lylekrahn on April 30, 2013 at 12:34 am said:

Absolutely amazing sequence. My only question is how did you secretly get them annoyed with each other:)

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:33 am said:
  
  Glad you liked these pics! I didn’t think I did anything. I mean normally they are so polite and well mannered I have no idea what set them off like this. 🙂
  
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mariayarri on April 30, 2013 at 1:40 am said:

I can´t even imagine how it was to sit there and look and at the same time take these stunning shots ! // Maria

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:34 am said:
  
  I had to really concentrate while taking the photos Maria, the action was quite compelling.
  
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niasunset on April 30, 2013 at 2:00 am said:

I haven’t seen something like that before… These are great photographs… But yes, scary too. As always you are amazing photographer, Thank you, love, nia

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:35 am said:
  
  Thank you for looking at these Nia even though they are a bit scary. 😯 😀
  
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niasunset on April 30, 2013 at 2:00 am said:

Reblogged this on photographyofnia.

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:35 am said:
  
  Thanks for the reblog Nia!
  
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meyer23 on April 30, 2013 at 2:57 am said:

Fantastic series. I would like to know if the 12 Alligators made some bets. 😉

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:36 am said:
  
  Thanks much! I do believe there was indeed some side bets and wagering going on. At least the fight looked legit and no one took a dive. 🙂
  
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janmasyn on April 30, 2013 at 3:31 am said:

Absolutely stunning shots Phil, never saw something like that before, great action shots.

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:36 am said:
  
  Thanks very much Jan, it was truly wild to witness this event.
  
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roughseasinthemed on April 30, 2013 at 5:31 am said:

Note to self: do not pick a fight with an alligator. Hope they both recovered quickly though.

I have a bizarre image in my head of you wandering around to all the other gators offering them tickets and asking them to pay. Or perhaps not.

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:39 am said:
  
  I try to avoid picking fights with these guys I figure it can’t do me a bit of good to get on their bad side.
  Sometimes I wonder who should be charging who at times like this. I probably would have paid an admission fee to attend this amazing event.
  
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Larry Treadwell on April 30, 2013 at 7:12 am said:

Amazing. I detect a bit of blood in the water on the first photos. Your gators are certainly more active than ours. Our are seen much less often and do not seem to be a territorial. I’ve going to have to visit your swamp.

These are great photos—just a fantastic series.

Larry

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:41 am said:
  
  Thanks very much for looking and commenting Larry I greatly appreciate it!
  There was indeed blood in the water and on the alligator. The one crawled up onto land at the edge of the pond after the fight was over and we could see he was cut up a bit. Plus he looked exhausted.
  Wild scene for sure.
  
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Jean-Paul on April 30, 2013 at 8:25 am said:

excellent ♥♥♥

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:41 am said:
  
  Thanks very much Jean-Paul I appreciate you looking!
  
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Littlesundog on April 30, 2013 at 8:47 am said:

These photographs are fantastic, Phil! You certainly get front-row seats to some of nature’s most spectacular displays!!

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:42 am said:
  
  Yes I had the perfect front row seat for this one and amazingly for the most part there was not grass and branches in the way as often happens, nice clear view.
  Thanks much for looking!
  
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davidharris518 on April 30, 2013 at 9:00 am said:

Man, those are great photos. I’ve never witness gators fighting like that, and I’ve seen plenty of gators over the years. Very cool. Must have been really something to have a ring side seat to that kind of action.

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:44 am said:
  
  Thanks David and yes we were quite thrilled to have the front row seat to the action!
  Thanks for checking these out and I appreciate your kind comments!
  
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Jean-Paul on April 30, 2013 at 9:05 am said:

A reblogué ceci sur Blog de Jean-Paul and commented:
excellent ♥♥♥

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:45 am said:
  
  Thank you for the reblog Jean-Paul 🙂
  
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  - Jean-Paul on April 30, 2013 at 9:59 am said:
    
    ♥
    
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Aian Ramos on April 30, 2013 at 9:09 am said:

Pretty amazing how they can close their throat like that.

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:45 am said:
  
  Thanks for checking these out.
  
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Rick Alonzo Photography on April 30, 2013 at 9:23 am said:

Wow I’ve never seen that before!

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 9:45 am said:
  
  I have seen fights before but never so intense, or so close. Thanks for looking.
  
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Maggie Davey on April 30, 2013 at 10:36 am said:

These are frightening pictures, Phil! Just as I was beginning to think they were easygoing and laidback, you show me a completely different side to them! Brilliant and fascinating pics!

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 10:40 am said:
  
  Well they usually are fairly laid back but…when it gets close to mating season and some of these guys start getting all ramped up we can get the occasional dust up.
  Glad you liked viewing these photos though. 🙂
  
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Diana on April 30, 2013 at 11:37 am said:

Wow, what a great series of shots, and, I bet, fantastic to witness. Would have love to been there and see it. I wonder if there were bets going on with the spectator alligators. 🙂 or some female wondering which is the real macho man. Thanks for posting these, they are great.

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 4:15 pm said:
  
  Thanks very much Diana, so glad you liked the alligator fight series! I do believe there were some side bets going on especially from the looks of that crowd. Just a bit shady 🙂
  
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Cowboys and Crossbones on April 30, 2013 at 12:47 pm said:

What cool shots! I am amazed by the other alligators floating up for front row seats! I never thought I’d be saying this but I feel sorry for the chewed up gator!

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 4:17 pm said:
  
  I could not believe that at least a dozen spectators floated over to watch the action, it was nuts!
  Yeah I do feel sorry for the poor beat up guy, he looked so tired and worn out there at the end and I bet was hurting quite a bit too.
  
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Gatorgirl51 on April 30, 2013 at 3:34 pm said:

What a fantastic series of photos!!! Never seen this before.

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 4:18 pm said:
  
  Thanks a million GG, I really appreciate your visit and I’m very happy you like these photos!
  
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Deb W. Trotter on April 30, 2013 at 3:47 pm said:

Wow! It must have been amazing to witness that “dispute!!” How close were you to the action to get those fantastic shots?

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- Phil Lanoue on April 30, 2013 at 4:19 pm said:
  
  Thank you Deb! Well it was pretty much right in front of me, maybe 12 feet away at most. In fact I needed a shorter lens, I kept cutting off noses I was so close.
  
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  - Deb W. Trotter on May 1, 2013 at 12:11 am said:
    
    I think I”d have been terrified!
    
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    - Phil Lanoue on May 1, 2013 at 11:50 am said:
      
      I wasn’t so much frightened as astonished by what I was witnessing. These guys were really going at it.
      
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Chillbrook on April 30, 2013 at 4:29 pm said:

They want their heads banging together Phil. Fabulous shots. Must have been quite a spectacle. I remember seeing gators at a gator farm in Florida at feeding time. Pretty fearsome.

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- Phil Lanoue on May 1, 2013 at 11:51 am said:
  
  It was something to see for sure Adrian! These guys were not fooling around and I have seen minor arguments and brief territorial disputes before but not ones that lasted this long.
  
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Beverly on April 30, 2013 at 10:06 pm said:

Great Pictures Phil. It was the talk of the park yesterday! We had guests come in the store to tell us about the gator fight. I’m sure this won’t be the last one we see!

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- Phil Lanoue on May 1, 2013 at 11:52 am said:
  
  Thanks very much Beverly and yes it is beginning to look like this will be an active mating season and then summer with the big guys as they start competing for food and mates.
  
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FeyGirl on April 30, 2013 at 11:01 pm said:

Wow, quite a tussle! Such amazing images… They definitely get, uh, antsy during the mating season. 🙂

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- Phil Lanoue on May 1, 2013 at 11:54 am said:
  
  Yes these two were really going at it and I was very surprised by how long it went on for. Normally they get their disagreements sorted out fairly quickly but maybe these guys had some unresolved issues. 😯
  
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viveka on May 1, 2013 at 7:00 am said:

Wow … what a gallery ….. talk about love biting. *smile – stunning photos.

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- Phil Lanoue on May 1, 2013 at 11:55 am said:
  
  Thank you for checking these photos out and I’m glad you liked them. It was an amazing scene to witness for sure.
  
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  - viveka on May 2, 2013 at 12:30 pm said:
    
    Amazing photos …. you should sell them – National Geographic !!!
    
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Lynn Hunter Hackett on May 1, 2013 at 1:04 pm said:

Great shots, Phil. That fight was the highlight of my trip to Huntington Beach SP. The power and aggressiveness of these reptiles never fails to impress. Growing up in Florida we always thought it was pretty cool to live in a place where the wildlife could eat you.

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- Phil Lanoue on May 1, 2013 at 5:56 pm said:
  
  Thanks very much Lynn, I really appreciate you looking and commenting. That fight was something memorable that’s for sure. Amazing how these guys can go from zero to sixty very quickly even when they initially appear rather docile.
  
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adinparadise on May 1, 2013 at 3:10 pm said:

What a piece of luck that you caught this spat, Phil. They look really scary when they’re cross, don’t they. Fabulous captures. 🙂

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- Phil Lanoue on May 1, 2013 at 5:58 pm said:
  
  I was fortunate for sure to be there when this occurred Sylvia. I was shocked how long it went on for and how serious they got. Well…I guess the possibility of death is quite serious. 😯
  
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  - adinparadise on May 2, 2013 at 4:46 am said:
    
    Yikes! Those teeth are certainly something to be reckoned with. 😯
    
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    - Phil Lanoue on May 2, 2013 at 5:55 pm said:
      
      As long as they keep their teeth to themselves (and each other) I’m probably in good shape.
      
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Fergiemoto on May 2, 2013 at 7:31 pm said:

I think I would be shaking in my boots with fear watching this fight. Those teeth can really do some damage.
Great shots, and you are courageous to stick around to get photos.

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- Phil Lanoue on May 4, 2013 at 12:08 pm said:
  
  These guys can really go at it when they get motivated and these two sure seemed motivated.
  Thanks for checking out the alligator altercation!
  
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Bella Remy Photography on May 3, 2013 at 6:22 pm said:

WOW OH WOW ! I have never seen a gator fight. This is an incredible moment to witness. And it went on for a half an hour? That’s truly amazing.

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- Phil Lanoue on May 4, 2013 at 12:09 pm said:
  
  It was amazing to see and it actually went on longer then that because it was already in full swing when I arrived. Yikes! Bet they had some aches and pains later.
  
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theforagingphotographer on May 6, 2013 at 3:26 am said:

Wow you can see the blood there in the first shot Phil!

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