Who’s Watching Who?

Monday afternoon I was watching this egret fishing along the edge of the marsh pond when an alligator came floating into the scene.

Now…we had the egret watching the gator…the gator watching the egret…and me watching them both…

We all ended up getting along just fine though, I never jumped in and bothered either one of them!

37 thoughts on “Who’s Watching Who?”

anotherday2paradise on May 7, 2014 at 3:49 pm said:

Very wise of you, Phil. As the saying goes, “Two’s company; three’s a crowd.” 🙂

LikeLike

Reply ↓
- Phil Lanoue on May 7, 2014 at 4:10 pm said:
  
  Yes indeed Sylvia, they didn’t need me jumping in there muddying up the waters. 🙂
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply ↓
einfachtilda on May 7, 2014 at 3:53 pm said:

Beautiful photo, but I’d be afraid of such an alligator 🙂

LikeLike

Reply ↓
- Phil Lanoue on May 7, 2014 at 4:11 pm said:
  
  Oh, er ist nur ein großes Baby 🙂
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply ↓
Patrizia M. on May 7, 2014 at 3:57 pm said:

Una pacifica convivenza. molto bello e molto bella la foto 🙂
Ciao, Pat

LikeLike

Reply ↓
- Phil Lanoue on May 7, 2014 at 4:13 pm said:
  
  Ci stavano diventando lungo, per ora comunque.
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply ↓
Gunta on May 7, 2014 at 4:10 pm said:

You are so very considerate! 😉

LikeLike

Reply ↓
- Phil Lanoue on May 7, 2014 at 4:13 pm said:
  
  Oh well, that’s me, Mister Consideration. 🙂
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply ↓
Mr Bennett Kent on May 7, 2014 at 4:21 pm said:

Super shot of the pair of them

LikeLike

Reply ↓
- Phil Lanoue on May 7, 2014 at 4:42 pm said:
  
  Thanks for checking this out and glad you like it!
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply ↓
bayphotosbydonna on May 7, 2014 at 4:25 pm said:

I continue to be amazed and surprised that the gator doesn’t go after all the birds, wow! I guess he’s a Mr. Nice Guy! 🙂

LikeLike

Reply ↓
- Phil Lanoue on May 7, 2014 at 4:42 pm said:
  
  Yeah he’s just a big pussycat! 🙂
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply ↓
Charlotte on May 7, 2014 at 4:37 pm said:

Have you ever seen a not-so-Mr. Nice-Guy encounter between a gator and an egret or heron?

LikeLike

Reply ↓
- Phil Lanoue on May 7, 2014 at 4:44 pm said:
  
  Oooo well… something brought this boy over to the edge of the pond but I can’t post those pics. 😮
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply ↓
Andy Oldham on May 7, 2014 at 4:37 pm said:

Glad you didn’t interfere! That egret would have torn you apart! 🙂

LikeLike

Reply ↓
- Phil Lanoue on May 7, 2014 at 4:44 pm said:
  
  Oh no kidding! Those birds are vicious!
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply ↓
Linda V. on May 7, 2014 at 4:51 pm said:

Great picture, but also wondered how you get in so close, do you use a zoom on them? or do you actually get that close???? I would scared to get so close to an alligator, and maybe he is a pet? lol….seems to be pretty mellow around the birds, and never knew Egrets were vicious either, every time I would see one they never seemed very vicious or threatening to me, an alligator yes, but maybe they are all friends!!!! hey you never know.

LikeLike

Reply ↓
- Phil Lanoue on May 7, 2014 at 5:12 pm said:
  
  Oh I get close, but naturally I have a telephoto lens. No pets, all alligator I photograph and post are wild animals living in the wild.
  I was only joking about the egret being vicious, they are quite docile birds. Well… at least to me, they can get a bit rowdy toward each other. 🙂
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply ↓
Steve Gingold on May 7, 2014 at 4:54 pm said:

Lots of neat interactions there, Phil. BTW, do alligators ever blow nostril bubbles? 🙂

LikeLike

Reply ↓
- Phil Lanoue on May 7, 2014 at 5:10 pm said:
  
  This guy blew bubbles at me, although, at the time I did not take it as a friendly gesture. 🙂
  https://phillanoue.com/alligator-photos/#jp-carousel-224
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply ↓
  - Steve Gingold on May 7, 2014 at 5:18 pm said:
    
    Yeah, I think Sting wrote something about a message in a bubble. 🙂
    
    LikeLike
    
    Reply ↓
    - Phil Lanoue on May 7, 2014 at 5:35 pm said:
      
      I think I know what that gator’s message was too. 😮
      
      LikeLike
      
      Reply ↓
Cowboys and Crossbones on May 7, 2014 at 5:29 pm said:

I’m glad you thought better of trying to jump in and join the pair…you’d have been like Jack Tripper but most likely not alive for long…

LikeLike

Reply ↓
- Phil Lanoue on May 7, 2014 at 5:34 pm said:
  
  If I would have jumped in there, the egret would have flown over to where I was, then he would have been able to watch the show of the alligator and me probably laughing about it. Smart ass bird.
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply ↓
Pat on May 7, 2014 at 7:36 pm said:

The egret looks very vulnerable. I guess he can make a quick getaway.

LikeLike

Reply ↓
- Phil Lanoue on May 7, 2014 at 8:36 pm said:
  
  Oh yeah, that egret can be 50 feet away in a fraction of a second.
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply ↓
Amy on May 7, 2014 at 7:52 pm said:

and we are watching your awesome photo 🙂 Thank you, Phil!

LikeLike

Reply ↓
- Phil Lanoue on May 7, 2014 at 8:37 pm said:
  
  I appreciate that Amy thanks.
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply ↓
Garden Walk Garden Talk on May 7, 2014 at 8:34 pm said:

I think they both might have fell over laughing if you jumped in. Very cool image Phil, not one seen very often I am sure.

LikeLike

Reply ↓
- Phil Lanoue on May 7, 2014 at 8:38 pm said:
  
  The egret would fly off to watch and laugh from a safe distance I bet. Glad you enjoyed seeing this pair!
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply ↓
Lyle Krahn on May 7, 2014 at 10:36 pm said:

Despite getting a great photo, I would still chalk that up to an opportunity missed:)

LikeLike

Reply ↓
- Phil Lanoue on May 7, 2014 at 10:40 pm said:
  
  Well I didn’t want to ruin my new sneakers by getting them all wet and nasty with pond gunk. 🙂
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply ↓
foxleylady on May 8, 2014 at 5:48 am said:

Brave, foolhardy, or both? The egret, not you, Phil!

LikeLike

Reply ↓
- Phil Lanoue on May 8, 2014 at 7:35 am said:
  
  Well sometimes me. 🙂 Thanks Maggie!
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply ↓
The Dancing Rider on May 8, 2014 at 9:20 am said:

Erm, good you didn’t intervene. 🙂 They really are keeping eyes on each other, one probably for a different reason than the other! 😉

LikeLike

Reply ↓
- Phil Lanoue on May 8, 2014 at 10:32 am said:
  
  They were keeping a close eye on each other. That alligator was all fired up too because his friend had just caught something interesting nearby.
  
  LikeLike
  
  Reply ↓
suburbanferndaleark on May 11, 2014 at 5:38 pm said:

You were all very trusting souls for the moment! Those gators can be awfully fast!

LikeLike

Reply ↓