Dixie Plantation and a Heron that looks like a zombie

Note: The first picture is just a shot of some of my fellow classmates wading about in the swampy portions of the Dixie Plantation... Pretty place, no?

On yet another one of our wonderful field excursions, we found a variety of life. My most memorable sightings would include a large adult - young adult alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) that was approximately 5-6 feet long and what could have been a prey item, a Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias).

The two are featured above in the photographs, however due to the feeding style of alligators, it is unlikely that this particular heron met its untimely fate at the powerfully snapping jaws (around 2,000lbs of pressure per square inch) of our friend cruising about in the pond nearest to where the bird was found. Although alligators do frequently feed on wading birds utilizing their dark coloration (as adults, younger individuals has yellow banding that is last to fade on/near the tail) and stealth to sneak up on unsuspecting prey; the alligator in this pond was perfectly large and capable enough of swallowing the entire bird whole.

However the heron was found around 6 feet from the shore and although its fragile bones were most certainly shattered and scattered about, it is more plausible that the bird was shot or died of poisoning/swallowing a lure or other man-made object - despite this area being protected, it is largely accessible to trouble-making humans, many of whom still find entertainment in shooting wading birds or other non-game animals (though we did find a White Tailed Deer skeleton nearby as well). The only creatures to have fed on this specimen appeared to be small mammalian scavengers and insects due to the animal being largely intact (within a 10 ft. radius).

(Channing Derry, SC) And yes, I am still awful with formatting... My apologies!