Now THAT’s a Big Gulp! Photographer catches amazing images of the moment a Great Blue Heron devours baby alligator whole
- Great Blue Heron feasts on adolescent alligator in Florida’s Lake Apopka
- Incredible images of the bird eating the gator were snapped by Danny Gilliam
- Photos were posted to Facebook, where they were shared 71,000 times
- Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission posted video in 2017 of similar event
A baby alligator in Florida was likely full of ‘egret’ as it was being devoured by a giant bird over the weekend.
Amazing images posted on Facebook on Sunday show a Great Blue Heron eating a large juvenile alligator in Florida’s Lake Apopka.
The photos were posted to Facebook by Danny Gilliam. As of Tuesday, the pictured went viral, as they’ve been shared more than 71,000 times while generating some 11,000 reactions.
A Great Blue Heron was photographed eating a juvenile alligator at a Florida lake
Danny Gilliam snapped the photographs while on an outing in Florida’s Lake Apopka over the weekend
The incredible images show the bird devouring the helpless alligator
In 2017, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Fish and Wildlife Research Institute posted a video of a heron devouring a baby alligator.
‘Great blue herons eat nearly anything within striking distance, including fish, amphibians, reptiles, small mammals, insects and other birds,’ FWC wrote.
‘This large, wading bird is a familiar sight to most Floridians.
‘It’s a permanent resident of wetlands throughout the state, often seen along ponds, lakes and canals in housing developments.’
As of Tuesday, Gilliam’s images generated more than 71,000 shares
The bird is seen gulping down the juvenile alligator in Florida’s Lake Apopka
The adolescent alligator was apparently too young to survive in the wild.
In the first years of an alligator’s life, they tend to eat small animals and stay near the water, surviving on insects, snails, worms, birds, and small fish.
The juvenile alligator stays with the mother for about three years before venturing out on their own in the wild.
After growing to a length of about four feet, the alligators is considered invulnerable in the wild.