At certain times of year, the plant life in the wetlands just gets to be TOO MUCH! Even an alligator could get stuck! 🐊
Caught up in the weeds
Birder's Journey
"You must have birds in your heart before you can find them in the bushes." — John Burroughs (Journal of the Outdoor Life, v20, 1923, p. 137)
Birder's Journey 
What a great capture BJ. The way the weeds wrap around the alligator makes it look almost painted into the scene. Nature’s camouflage at its finest.
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Thanks for this great comment, Anita! Although we often see gators covered with duckweed or other marsh plants, this one was truly immersed in the thick of it!
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This distance-diminishing perspective makes it look like you could easily have gotten caught up in the jaws of your subject.
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Haha! Luckily, Steve, I was standing on the boardwalk, and he was in the water!
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I knew it was something of the sort because I did the same from a footbridge in Florida last year.
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Yes! Great post! I must’ve missed it back then. Fortunately for him, the gator in that last shot was enjoying some nice clean water.
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Wow! The color of the weeds is lovely, but I’d hate to be in there with that alligator!
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Same here, Deborah 😬 I love the way he seemed to plow through it until he just couldn’t go any further. 😉
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I had no idea pond weeds could getvthat thick. Cool shot!
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That’s about as thick as I have ever seen them myself, Amy!
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Excellent photo, it does look like he couldn’t move.
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Thanks, Belinda! Exactly!🐊
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Wow! At first glance I thought it was a painting. 👌👌👌
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Thank you, Michael!!
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You’re most welcome.
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You’re welcome.
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Hehe, that makes me feel a lot less bad about the blanketweed that’s trying to take over my pond. 🙂 The alligator looks as if he’s all wrapped up in a giant woolly scarf!
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lol! Yes, Ann, perfect description! A giant woolly green scarf.☺️
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I have a feeling he can find his way out! Susan
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Haha 🐊. Undoubtedly, Susan, but I didn’t stay long enough to find out. Too many beautiful birds to find there at Orlando Wetlands.
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What an amazing thing to see and photograph. I assume that is not an invasive water weed?
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It WAS amazing to see, Carol. ☺️Although I can’t be 100% sure, based on where I saw this, I believe it is this plant:
Hydrodictyon reticulatum, widely known as water-net algae, is an intriguing freshwater green alga commonly found in Florida’s ponds and marshes . In the nutrient-rich, wetland-heavy ecosystem of the Circle B Bar Reserve in Lakeland, Florida, this algae occasionally appears as large, floating mesh-like mats.
The little brighter green flower-like plant on the left looks like a bit of water lettuce.
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Hi Carol – thanks so much for this information. It seems that this algae does not usually get invasive in its natural habitats, such as in Florida. It is quite a sight to see!
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