Dog Pack Kills Alligator In Florida At times nature can be cruel, but there is also a raw beauty, and even a certain justice manifested within that cruelty.The alligator, one of the oldest and ultimate predators, normally considered the ‘apex predator’ in its natural eco-system, can still fall victim to implemented ‘team work’ strategy, made possible by the tight knit social structure and ‘survival of the fittest pack mentality’ bred into canines over the last thousands of years by natural selection.See the remarkable photograph attached, courtesy of Nature Magazine. Note that the Alpha dog has a muzzle hold on the gator preventing it from breathing, while the remainder of the pack prevents the beast from rolling.
Beware! This is not for the squeamish!Click here ONLY if you are ready to view image….
Texas Facts Nobody asked for them, but here are some little known Texas facts:
- Beaumont to El Paso: 742 miles
- Beaumont to Chicago: 770 miles
- El Paso is closer to California than to Dallas
- World’s first rodeo was in Pecos… July 4, 1883.
- The Flagship Hotel in Galveston is the only hotel in North America built over water.
- The Heisman Trophy was named after John William Heisman who was the first full time coach for Rice University in Houston.
- Brazoria County has more species of birds than any other area in North America.
- Aransas Wildlife Refuge is the winter home of North America’s only remaining flock of whooping cranes.
- Jalapeno jelly originated in Lake Jackson in 1978.
- The worst natural disaster in U.S. history was in 1900 caused by a hurricane in which over 8000 lives were lost on Galveston Island.
- The first word spoken from the moon, July 20, 1969, was HOUSTON.
- King Ranch is larger than Rhode Island.
- Tropical Storm Claudette brought a U.S. rainfall record of 43″ in 24 hours in and around Alvin in July 1979.
- Texas is the only state to enter the U.S. by TREATY, instead of by annexation. (This allows the Texas flag to fly at the same height as the US flag. The Treaty also provided that Texas can split itself into 5 States, if it wants. And the Treaty also provided that Texas can secede from the Union, if it wants.)
- A Live Oak tree near Fulton is estimated to be 1500 years old.
- Caddo Lake is the only natural lake in the state.
- Dr Pepper was invented in Waco in 1885. There is no period after Dr in Dr Pepper.
Texas has had six capital cities:
- Washington-on-the-Brazos
- Harrisburg
- Galveston
- Velasco
- West Columbia
- Austin
- The Capitol Dome in Austin is the only dome in the U.S. which is taller than the Capitol Building in Washington D.C. (by 7 feet).
- The name TEXAS comes from the Hasini Indian word “tejas” meaning friends. Tejas is not Spanish for Texas.
- The State animal is the Armadillo. (An interesting bit of trivia about the armadillo is they always have four babies! They have one egg which splits into four and they either have four males or four females. Well…I thought it was interesting anyway!)
The first domed stadium in the U.S. was the Astrodome in Houston.THE TEN COMMANDMENTS – TEXAS STYLE
People here in Texas have trouble with all those shalls and shall nots in the Ten Commandments. Folks here just aren’t used to talking in those terms. So, some folks out in West Texas got together and translated the “King James” version into “King Ranch” version:
Ten Commandments, cowboy style.
Cowboy’s Ten Commandments posted on the wall at Cross Trails Church in Fairlie, Texas.
- Just one God.
- Honor yer Ma & Pa.
- No telling tales or gossipin’.
- Git yourself to Sunday meeting.
- Put nothin’ before God.
- No foolin’ around with another fellow’s gal.
- No killin’.
- Watch yer mouth.
- Don’t take what ain’t yers.
- Don’t be hankerin’ for yer buddy’s stuff.
That’s kinda plain ‘n simple don’t ya think?
Via the Braden Files