Overview

• On May 19, Ashlyn Bartholomew captured video of a tailless alligator crossing Highway 23 in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, while driving her children home from baseball practice.
• Observers noted the creature’s tail was completely lopped off at its base, leaving behind a fully healed stub.
• Reptile expert Robert Mendyk of the Audubon Zoo said the injury likely resulted from a battle over territory or a collision with a boat propeller.
• Losing its tail has diminished the alligator’s swimming propulsion and forced it to adapt its hunting tactics along nearby canals.
• The footage has gone viral on social media, drawing sympathy from users and prompting comparisons to a jawless alligator recently photographed in Florida’s Everglades.