Giant 'dinosaur-looking' gator found on Florida golf course shocks natives

[Cigar]

http://www.theblaze.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/wptv-alligator-myakka-pines-club_1426062830435_14824187_ver1.0_640_480-620x465.jpg

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/giant-dinosaur-looking-gator-found-florida-golf-article-1.2145352

A massive dinosaur-like alligator found crawling on a Florida golf course has even the natives shocked.

The giant prehistoric-looking gator was spotted last weekend at the Myakka Pines Golf Club near the Gulf Coast, moving from one pond to another, the Englewood club posted on Facebook.

"Another view of the Gator on the course yesterday," Myakka Pines wrote. "What a dinosaur looking reptile!"

The gator, estimated to be about 13-feet long, has been calling the golf course home for the last week, Myakka Pines general manager Mickie Zada told the Daily News.


http://parteetime.com/pics/fun/gator-golf.jpg

[PolWatch]

yipes!

[Captain Obvious]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UU7DNet918k

[sachem]

Kill it!!

[southwest88]

Great! This critter is big enough, can we train him (& his brethren) to go & find & eat all the monster pythons, boas, constrictors, etc. in southern FL?

& which tastes better anyway - the snakes or the 'gators? Or do they all taste like chicken?

Either way, I say the 'gator has right of precedence. So the 'gators should stay, & the alien snakes, etc. become 'gator chum.

[Max Rockatansky]

They taste like chicken!

Gators walk like that. There used to be a 15 footer on the NAS Jacksonville golf course. It was treated like any other obstacle. The base was next to the St. Johns river where gators were pretty common.

Here's a video of walking gator:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3fna4KOiH8U

[Max Rockatansky]

Great! This critter is big enough, can we train him (& his brethren) to go & find & eat all the monster pythons, boas, constrictors, etc. in southern FL?

& which tastes better anyway - the snakes or the 'gators? Or do they all taste like chicken?

Either way, I say the 'gator has right of precedence. So the 'gators should stay, & the alien snakes, etc. become 'gator chum.Yes and they all taste like chicken.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfYAj1k9uZM

[Redrose]

We were playing gold in Florida about 15 years ago. The hole we were on has a pond on it. I was lining up my shot with my back to the pond, my husband was always hurrying me to make my shot, as he was doing this time, and as usual I was ignoring him. Finally he said in a loud voice, "hit the damn ball and get in the damn cart". I swung, made a lousy shot and got in the cart very annoyed at him. I asked why he was being such a jerk, and he said look behind you, there was a 7-8 foot alligator walking from the pond to exactly where my ball was. I was furious at him. I said, "next time the hell with the shot, just yell ALLIGATOR".

[Bob]

yipes!

Can't speak for Gators but the Crocodiles get to over 22 feet long.

10824

[Bob]

We were playing gold in Florida about 15 years ago. The hole we were on has a pond on it. I was lining up my shot with my back to the pond, my husband was always hurrying me to make my shot, as he was doing this time, and as usual I was ignoring him. Finally he said in a loud voice, "hit the damn ball and get in the damn cart". I swung, made a lousy shot and got in the cart very annoyed at him. I asked why he was being such a jerk, and he said look behind you, there was a 7-8 foot alligator walking from the pond to exactly where my ball was. I was furious at him. I said, "next time the hell with the shot, just yell ALLIGATOR".

Here in CA, we are comfortable with earth quakes. You all are comfortable with very large reptiles. Go figure.

I saw some captive Gators not far from Miami and some out in the wild when riding the airboat. It was amazing the way some guy handled gators and handled them a lot.

I saw recently on TV a program featuring swimming with alligators. Seems you can get into the water and swim with them and not get hurt.

I posted a photo of a super Crock so won't post it here. But check it out above this post.

[Peter1469]

Can't speak for Gators but the Crocodiles get to over 22 feet long.

10824

Salt water crocks in the Gulf of Mexico get that big. I have been near some as big as our boat.

[Redrose]

Here in CA, we are comfortable with earth quakes. You all are comfortable with very large reptiles. Go figure.

I saw some captive Gators not far from Miami and some out in the wild when riding the airboat. It was amazing the way some guy handled gators and handled them a lot.

I saw recently on TV a program featuring swimming with alligators. Seems you can get into the water and swim with them and not get hurt.

I posted a photo of a super Crock so won't post it here. But check it out above this post.


I'm not comfortable with them at all. We've had them in our driveway too. Not too big, 4-5 feet. But they can still hurt you. Over five feet they remove them and kill them, under that they relocate them.

Now I'm dealing with black bear. I felt that D.C./Virginia quake a couple of years ago, not a nice experience. It cracked my driveway.

[Bob]

I'm not comfortable with them at all. We've had them in our driveway too. Not too big, 4-5 feet. But they can still hurt you. Over five feet they remove them and kill them, under that they relocate them.

Now I'm dealing with black bear. I felt that D.C./Virginia quake a couple of years ago, not a nice experience. It cracked my driveway.

I was trying to see the response. LOL Wait till you feel a huge quake. The New Madrid close to St. Louis is a whopper. Makes ours seem tame.

Thing here is the quakes come and then none for many many years. I should worry since they say I am next to feel a giant quake. I sure hope not.

[Redrose]

Peter1469

Were you in the DC area when that quake happened a couple of years ago? We got a pretty good rumble from it. I thouht I was having a stroke, it started in my feet and rose up through me, it was a weird experience.

[Bob]

Salt water crocks in the Gulf of Mexico get that big. I have been near some as big as our boat.

I had no clue they were also in the Gulf. Learn something every day. Thanks.

[Bob]

@Peter1469 (http://thepoliticalforums.com/member.php?u=10)

Were you in the DC area when that quake happened a couple of years ago? We got a pretty good rumble from it. I thouht I was having a stroke, it started in my feet and rose up through me, it was a weird experience.

A tip. Think of it as if you were on a boat. And enjoy them. I mean how afraid would you be on a trampoline?

How ever, by a brick building, try to escape the building. They don't build for quakes in the East so don't get close to brick walls or concrete block walls. If you are inside one of those buildings, get out fast.

Here we build them to survive quakes.

[Redrose]

A tip. Think of it as if you were on a boat. And enjoy them. I mean how afraid would you be on a trampoline?

How ever, by a brick building, try to escape the building. They don't build for quakes in the East so don't get close to brick walls or concrete block walls. If you are inside one of those buildings, get out fast.

Here we build them to survive quakes.


I have an all brick home, two story with steep peaks. I do carry earthquake insurance, but the deductible is $14,000.

You've never seen me on a trampoline, it's not a pretty site. My coordination ended in my late teens. lol

I also get seasick on the dock.

I've been in a flood, many hurricanes, a very small tornado, and a fire, earthquakes un-nerve me.

[Peter1469]

@Peter1469 (http://thepoliticalforums.com/member.php?u=10)

Were you in the DC area when that quake happened a couple of years ago? We got a pretty good rumble from it. I thouht I was having a stroke, it started in my feet and rose up through me, it was a weird experience.

I was walking across the national mall during it. I was annoyed that everyone freaked out.

[Peter1469]

I had no clue they were also in the Gulf. Learn something every day. Thanks.

They don't get too far from shore so far as I know.

[Bob]

I have an all brick home, two story with steep peaks. I do carry earthquake insurance, but the deductible is $14,000.

You've never seen me on a trampoline, it's not a pretty site. My coordination ended in my late teens. lol

I also get seasick on the dock.

I've been in a flood, many hurricanes, a very small tornado, and a fire, earthquakes un-nerve me.

Your brick house is not built for earthquakes. To be built for them, you must have bolts in the house that run from the outside wall to opposite outside wall. And bolted both front to back and side to side. Steel has to tie the house together. By the way, the price of the insurance drops a lot. It does not take too many steel bolts.

I first would wonder if you really need quake insurance?

I don't know how far you are from the new madrid quake line that is next to the Mississippi River. Even 50 miles from it means you might not feel any lighter quakes. They had some in the 1800s that really were terrible. The shaking was felt all the way to Philadelphia. We don't get any near that big.

[Redrose]

I was trying to see the response. LOL Wait till you feel a huge quake. The New Madrid close to St. Louis is a whopper. Makes ours seem tame.

Thing here is the quakes come and then none for many many years. I should worry since they say I am next to feel a giant quake. I sure hope not.

I've read about the New Madrid fault, and you are right it is worse than the San Andreas fault. We're about 600 miles east of it, and depending on the magnatude, we would have damage. I hope I don't live to see it.

One of my girls homes in Florida is going through sinkhole repair. She and her husband found a sinkhole under their house and pool. So, it's costing the insurance company $190,000 to fix it. They've been at her house 2 weeks, and plan to be there another month. I saw the pictures, what a mess.

Seems as if most areas have some sort of phenomenon to deal with.

[Peter1469]

I was walking across the national mall during it. I was annoyed that everyone freaked out.

It took me 40 minutes to get out of my parking garage -after a 2 hour wait for engineers to say the building was safe to even get to my SUV.

[Redrose]

Peter, was there much damage in that area? If I remember correctly, it was around a 6.

[Bob]

I've read about the New Madrid fault, and you are right it is worse than the San Andreas fault. We're about 600 miles east of it, and depending on the magnatude, we would have damage. I hope I don't live to see it.

One of my girls homes in Florida is going through sinkhole repair. She and her husband found a sinkhole under their house and pool. So, it's costing the insurance company $190,000 to fix it. They've been at her house 2 weeks, and plan to be there another month. I saw the pictures, what a mess.

Seems as if most areas have some sort of phenomenon to deal with.

You may be way overpaying for insurance.

You and your hubby ought to price what it costs to have bolts put into the house. Then the insurance company ought to almost give you insurance on quakes.

I priced a lot of insurance companies for clients. I used to advise using State Farm but changed to Farmers when they got reasonable fees on houses. I have never priced them in your part of the country. But it is easy to price a lot of them. Too many times people assume prices are very close. Then the deductible ought to be what you can easily afford, such as $1,000. As far as you are from the New Madrid, I doubt you get close to $14,000 damage provided your home has some bracing advised by an engineer. A few bucks and you can have a safer home and save on insurance. If you suffer $10,000 damage (for instance) and have the high deductible, why even bother paying premiums? It is a waste of money. Insure for you, not the insurance company. They love making a lot of money.

[Redrose]

The insurance is only $80 semi-annually, a special rider. The deductible is based on the price of the house minus the land. We figured if we had an earthquake that caused massive damage, all we would pay is the $14,000. Damage under the deductible, we could handle.

Without it, our regular home insurance won't cover quakes. We have a $500 deductible on that.

[iustitia]

http://new2.fjcdn.com/thumbnails/comments/Its+an+apc+_60c9c543c09a85f4a0d8aa04ffe8a19a.png

Dinosaurs walk with their legs directly under their bodies, whereas crocodilians and other reptiles walk with legs extending from their sides.

[Redrose]

http://new2.fjcdn.com/thumbnails/comments/Its+an+apc+_60c9c543c09a85f4a0d8aa04ffe8a19a.png

Dinosaurs walk with their legs directly under their bodies, whereas crocodilians and other reptiles walk with legs extending from their sides.


Is that because crocodilians swim? Do all dinosaurs have their legs directly under their body?

[iustitia]

Dinosaurs evolved with different hip structure which eventually allowed for upright walking. The most obvious are dinosaurs with bird-like hips such as theropods, two-legged dinosaurs which are the ancestors of birds. Theropods include tyrannosaurs, raptors and such.

http://www.mhhe.com/biosci/genbio/raven6b/graphics/raven06b/enhancementchapters/images/45_47.jpg

[Redrose]

Dinosaurs evolved with different hip structure which eventually allowed for upright walking. The most obvious are dinosaurs with bird-like hips such as theropods, two-legged dinosaurs which are the ancestors of birds. Theropods include tyrannosaurs, raptors and such.

http://www.mhhe.com/biosci/genbio/raven6b/graphics/raven06b/enhancementchapters/images/45_47.jpg

All I know about dinosaurs I learned from my 8 year old grandson. He is fascinated with them. When his front teeth were missing, it was humorous listening to him pronounce the names of those creatures.
He says he wants to be a paleontologist or a policeman like his grandpa.

[Bob]

The insurance is only $80 semi-annually, a special rider. The deductible is based on the price of the house minus the land. We figured if we had an earthquake that caused massive damage, all we would pay is the $14,000. Damage under the deductible, we could handle.

Without it, our regular home insurance won't cover quakes. We have a $500 deductible on that.

Well, I realize $80 each 6 months is cheap which means the risk of you having a quake is super low. Here on a cheap house,they can expect to pay $100 per month. This tells me you could use the money on a good vacation and be better off. 600 miles from the New madrid means you are safe. very very safe. But it's your money.

I would survey how many in your area pay for such insurance trying to find out from the state?

[Redrose]

Well, I realize $80 each 6 months is cheap which means the risk of you having a quake is super low. Here on a cheap house,they can expect to pay $100 per month. This tells me you could use the money on a good vacation and be better off. 600 miles from the New madrid means you are safe. very very safe. But it's your money.

I would survey how many in your area pay for such insurance trying to find out from the state?


I inherited my dad's "worry gene" and $160 per year gives me some peace of mind, my home would be replaced if destroyed. What concerns me is the height of our brick walls. We have a one story home, but the attic is 2.5 stories high, we have stairs up to the attic and then another flight of stairs to the second floor in the attic, it's massive, great storage. It's temperature controlled. The peaks on the sides are 40' high, with a very steep roof. A beautiful home. Even a good shake could cause severe brick damage that is expensive to repair.

[Bob]

I inherited my dad's "worry gene" and $160 per year gives me some peace of mind, my home would be replaced if destroyed. What concerns me is the height of our brick walls. We have a one story home, but the attic is 2.5 stories high, we have stairs up to the attic and then another flight of stairs to the second floor in the attic, it's massive, great storage. It's temperature controlled. The peaks on the sides are 40' high, with a very steep roof. A beautiful home. Even a good shake could cause severe brick damage that is expensive to repair.

Personally, I would use the same money and hire a local structural engineer and go by his recommendations.

HE might tell you you are blowing money and have nothing to fear. Were you close to St. Louis, I would keep my mouth shut. Just saying. I have in the past hired those sort of guys. Ten years of $160 per year is $1600.

Why do you fear an earthquake?

[Redrose]

Personally, I would use the same money and hire a local structural engineer and go by his recommendations.

HE might tell you you are blowing money and have nothing to fear. Were you close to St. Louis, I would keep my mouth shut. Just saying. I have in the past hired those sort of guys. Ten years of $160 per year is $1600.

Why do you fear an earthquake?


One of my dearest friends from NY has a twin sister in California. She's been there since the mid seventies. She lost a home to fire, lost a home to a quake, and had her pool slide into her living room with a mud slide twice. Of all those disasters, the quake was the most terrifying she said. That made an impression on me. We live about 20 miles from Maryville, TN and they get tremors occassionally, causing minor to moderate damage. If I live another 20 years, that will be $3200. I can deal with that. Then our kids can deal with it.

[Bob]

One of my dearest friends from NY has a twin sister in California. She's been there since the mid seventies. She lost a home to fire, lost a home to a quake, and had her pool slide into her living room with a mud slide twice. Of all those disasters, the quake was the most terrifying she said. That made an impression on me. We live about 20 miles from Maryville, TN and they get tremors occassionally, causing minor to moderate damage. If I live another 20 years, that will be $3200. I can deal with that. Then our kids can deal with it.

Some locations in CA are terrible.

You might find this interesting.

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/states/tennessee/history.php

[Redrose]

I was surprised when I heard this mountainous area got earthquake tremors, some strong ones too.

What convinced me to get the insurance was my State Farm agent, he is my neighbor a few houses away and he has it. We have the exact same house.

Thank you for that link, it was very interesting.

[Peter1469]

Peter, was there much damage in that area? If I remember correctly, it was around a 6.


Not much damage. The Washington Monument got cracked and it took a long time to fix it.

[southwest88]

I've read about the New Madrid fault, and you are right it is worse than the San Andreas fault. We're about 600 miles east of it, and depending on the magnatude, we would have damage. I hope I don't live to see it.

One of my girls homes in Florida is going through sinkhole repair. She and her husband found a sinkhole under their house and pool. So, it's costing the insurance company $190,000 to fix it. They've been at her house 2 weeks, and plan to be there another month. I saw the pictures, what a mess.

Seems as if most areas have some sort of phenomenon to deal with.

Well, yah, true enough. In the case of FL, however, a lot of the sinkholes, environmental degradation, saltwater incursion, etc. is from attempts to extract money from swamp. FL, the land speculators & the Army Corps of Engineers have drained, dug canals, sunk considerable money into rearranging water flows - usually discarding drinkable water into canals running to the Atlantic or the Gulf. Now that drinkable water is becoming scarce (see above), the hunt is on to find & tap potable water. & all that pumping, dredging, digging canals, draining swamps, lagoons, removing overfill & changing drainage patterns @ random, has caused an impressive mushrooming of sinkholes.

Offhand, I'd say follow the Air Force's (?) lead, when Homestead AB got walloped by hurricane Andrew in 1992. The base was rebuilt, but as a reserve base - with fewer assets for any storm to destroy. I think FL would make a nice national park for the manatees. Or a nice submarine park - it seems to be headed that way in any event, no matter what language the current FL landlord/waterworks governor may moot.

[southwest88]

Dinosaurs evolved with different hip structure which eventually allowed for upright walking. The most obvious are dinosaurs with bird-like hips such as theropods, two-legged dinosaurs which are the ancestors of birds. Theropods include tyrannosaurs, raptors and such.

http://www.mhhe.com/biosci/genbio/raven6b/graphics/raven06b/enhancementchapters/images/45_47.jpg

I know the dimetrodon aren't classified as dinosaurs, & they went extinct before the dinosaurs arose. But none of the dimetrodon line - looking like 'gators with sails on their spine - lived through the age of dinosaurs? (& these seem to have a 'gator-like leg articulation)

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/Dimetrodon8DB.jpg/330px-Dimetrodon8DB.jpg (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Dimetrodon8DB.jpg)
from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dimetrodon

[silvereyes]

Great! This critter is big enough, can we train him (& his brethren) to go & find & eat all the monster pythons, boas, constrictors, etc. in southern FL?

& which tastes better anyway - the snakes or the 'gators? Or do they all taste like chicken?

Either way, I say the 'gator has right of precedence. So the 'gators should stay, & the alien snakes, etc. become 'gator chum.
Have you seen the pictures of the snake that exploded after it swallowed a gator?

[southwest88]

Have you seen the pictures of the snake that exploded after it swallowed a gator?

No, I haven't. It's alright though, I don't really need to see it. Or is this the lead-in to some turducken variant joke? (See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turducken)

But I'll bite: Did the 'gator survive the incident? (Did he scuttle towards the light? Well, there really was light @ the end of the ... snake? But it wasn't the end of the snake, not literally, was it? Oh, dear ...)

[Max Rockatansky]

No, I haven't. It's alright though, I don't really need to see it. Or is this the lead-in to some turducken variant joke? (See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turducken)

But I'll bite: Did the 'gator survive the incident? (Did he scuttle towards the light? Well, there really was light @ the end of the ... snake? But it wasn't the end of the snake, not literally, was it? Oh, dear ...)

The snake was doing an impression of the HRC campaign after one too many scandals.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8L62rInB5U

[silvereyes]

Yep, thats the one.

[PolWatch]

last thought by the snake: Oh, for an alka-seltzer!