So this weekend, the students, like the alumni visitors, seemed to turn to Gator tradition to put their worries on a back burner. Police have said they are analyzing hundreds of pieces of evidence and are confident they will solve the killings, but they have been unable to say how soon an arrest might be made. We're missing the one event that will make this all go away _ an arrest." Is still very clearly on everyone's mind. "Young people are incredibly resilient," said Art Sandeen, UF's vice president for student affairs. UF officials said that even during a weekend of celebrations, the murders generate an undercurrent of worry that has not left the campus. Since the August killings, authorities have kept up heavy patrols throughout the city, particularly in the area frequented by students and, this weekend, alumni. And, Sumoski said, police are everywhere. Students seldom are seen walking alone, he said, a shift from more carefree days. Still, Sumoski and other alumni say they did note changes _ particularly the effect the murders have brought to their school. "No one seems to be doting on the bad news." "Even if it's not alligator bellowing season, you never want to approach an alligator, you want to give it space."We just came here to have a good time, like always," said Jim Sumoski, a 1982 graduate. You want to give them the respect and the distance that they they deserve," Griffin said. You're coming into their house and their home. "What we tell people when they come to the refuge to visit is, this is where the alligators live. They are especially mobile this time of year because of mating season. There have been multiple alligator sightings in the Houston area as they are native to the region. When a male alligator bellows, water droplets form around its spine from an inaudible frequency released. It's almost like advertising yourself, how big you are and where you are to try to attract a mate." "Once one starts (bellowing), it will trigger all the other ones in the area. "You can definitely hear it even if you can't see it - even as a visitor in all of the visitor areas," Griffin said. It was her first time witnessing the act, she said During courtship, bellowing can go back and forth for several days until the right match is found.Īllison Griffin, a biologist at Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, was there when the video of the alligator bellowing was taken. The female determines the size of the male alligator based on how intense and deep the bellow is. She is looking for a mate that is larger than herself to give her offspring their best chance at survival, experts said. While both exude the same type of sound, water droplets form on the spine area of a male alligators when they bellow because there is an inaudible frequency they produce.įemale alligators begin to bellow when they are calling for a mate. In the video, a female alligator is seen bellowing and a male gator can be heard responding with the same sound. Mating season begins in May and June, and nesting takes place in June and July. Courtship, the time where alligators are finding a mate by bellowing, begins in April. It is part of the courtship behaviors for alligators weeks before they mate. The bellowing sound is common this time of year in wetland areas home to gators like Aransas National Wildlife Refuge. Fish and Wildlife Service Why do alligators bellow?
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