Flash Fiction for the Purposeful Practitioner
Your Photo Prompt for Week #23 – 2016
The opening sentence for the June 2nd Flash Fiction for the Purposeful Practitioner: “It was instinct. I just let go of them.” Please use this sentence (or this thought) somewhere in your flash.
Egg Collecting
“Good morning, students,” Pipper said cheerfully.
“Today’s topic will be alligators.”
“I use to work on an alligator farm part-time. My job was to help collect alligator eggs.”
“One afternoon I had picked up a handful of alligator eggs and all of a sudden, a large alligator appeared and hissed at me! I dropped the eggs immediately. It was instinct, I just let go of them. Then, I quickly moved to another area of the marshes.”
“The alligator eggs are collected from the nests and hatched on the alligator farm. When the eggs hatch on the farm, the alligators grow to about four feet in twelve to eighteen months and this helps them survive longer when returned to the wild.”
“However, when they hatch in the wild, it will take four to five years for them to grow four feet.”
“If the alligators are small, they are often times eaten by birds, snakes, raccoons, and other wetland creatures. If they are large, they have a better chance of survival.”
“At one time they were an endangered species, but not any more.”
Words (181)
Copyright © 2016 Written by Jessie Cross ~ All rights reserved
Very interesting – so many species live longer and produce more young in captivity too, safe from predation. An interesting and informative write.
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Thanks so much! I enjoyed writing this and learned a few things in the process.
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““If the alligators are small, they are often times eaten by birds, snakes, raccoons, and other wetland creatures. ”
~Oh, I didn’t know those things about alligators. I imagine them huge and fearsome most of the time. Great take, Jessie. And very informative, too. Thanks for sharing them to us. 🙂
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Thank you, your welcome. I learned a few things about them myself in doing the research.
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don’t think I’d like that job -they look like sensitive parents! great post, really interesting 🙂
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No, I would not like it either. I’m quite sure they could out run me! Thank you for reading and commenting.
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Great story, Jessie and I learned a lot about alligators that I didn’t know.
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Thank you, Joy. I learned a few things myself..and I never have liked alligators! I will not ride in a boat on waters that have alligators. We have our fair share here in Florida and they have been known to come up in your yard if there is a pond near you.
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I like the interesting information about Alligators you shared in your story Jessie. Why in the wild does it take them years to grow up to four-feet and in captivity they are four-feet or more in about a year and a half? It makes sense they would be bigger in the wild, to fend off predators. But it also makes sense on a farm they would be bigger because of the lack of predators lol. Just wondering if you know 🙂 Enjoyed your take.
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Thank you, I’m glad you enjoyed it. They grow faster on farms because of continuous and optimum growing conditions (food supply, air and water temperatures . Wild alligators have approximately 6 months of growing conditions due to cooler temperatures in the late fall, winter and early spring.
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Nice take on the egg collecting 😉
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Thank you! 😊
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Great piece. And I learned a lot!
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Thank you. 😊
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