The amazing pike killifish

Pike are ambush predators with elongated bodies and toothy jaws. The pike body-form has evolved convergently in many different groups of fish on almost every continent and ocean. Examples of convergent evolution of pike in groups of fish from different geographic regions. These are just a few representative species, but dozens of others could have […]

On the Origin of Florida’s Introduced Species

Burmese pythons, green iguanas, bullseye snakehead, peacock bass……and the list goes on. Florida seems to be the epicenter for introduced species in the United States. Since moving to South Florida at the beginning of the year I have been amazed at the number and diversity of introduced species, and nowhere is this more evident than […]

A five foot alligator feeding on…..one inch poeciliid fishes?

A few weeks ago while biking the 15-mile loop of the Everglades Shark Valley, I came across an alligator in a drying pool engaging in some interesting behavior. It looked as if the alligator was employing a feeding technique to capture and eat poeciliid fishes (perhaps Gambusia holbrooki). The alligator was in a small muddy […]

Water snakes galore in the Everglades

The Everglades, southern Florida’s vast wetland, are an amazing place to observe nature. Over Memorial Day weekend I went to the Everglades to do some fishing and nature photography. At dusk, I observed three species of water snake, the southern water snake (Nerodia fasciata), the Florida green water snake (Nerodia floridana), and the brown water […]