A Florida woman came shockingly close up to a moment of alligator cannibalism when she recorded one gator devouring another in the wetlands of a state park.
Tammy Shaw shared the video to Alligators of Florida, a Facebook group, on August 10 after seeing the occurrence on August 4.
According to the organisation, it’s “a place to upload your alligator images for everyone to enjoy, share, and comment on.”
She videotaped the scene from a nearby paddleboard as one alligator smacked another against the water before tearing it into bits to devour in the video, which she titled “Gator eating gator, Silver Springs.”
The predator gator is then seen emerging from the water and starting tossing the prey about before beginning to gorge itself.
Shaw told Yahoo News that the gator that attacked her may have been even bigger than the inflatable paddleboard she was riding on, which was around 11 feet long.
Kind of dramatic, but very fascinating to observe, was how Shaw described it up.
She continued by stating that the gator being consumed was no more than five to seven feet.
Cannibalism among alligators is prevalent, particularly between bigger and lesser members of the species out of survivalism, according to the educational website Animal Club.
According to Live Science, six to seven percent of newborn alligators are murdered by other gators as food.
Shaw said that once the alligator finished his meal, she had to ultimately cease shooting because of how close she was to him.
The moniker “Big Head Fred” was given to the alligator by one of the Facebook group’s members.
Another jokingly referred to it as “gator MMA,” and both parties recognised that Shaw was courageous to enter their territory.
Alligators may be found everywhere there is visible standing water, according to the state of Florida, which has 67 counties.
Given that it often offers glass-bottom boats to visitors, Silver Springs State Park provides a clear view of any possible alligator activity.