[at-l] Re: at-l Digest, Vol 10, Issue 10

[jbryankramer at msn.com (J Bryan Kramer)]

Well that paper wasn't really concerned with Alligator top speeds but rather
with energetics/gait when applied back to dinosaurs, but I have to agree
that the 30 mph speed seems to be in the swamp legend category. I did find
one claim of 40 meters in 4.6 seconds though and the nps everglades sites
says 30 mph for short distances. But 10 mph might be more likely.

Bryan

 Samuel Adams advised, "Let us contemplate our forefathers, and posterity,
and resolve to maintain the rights bequeathed to us from the former, for the
sake of the latter."
>
> From tne EcoFlorida website:
>
> Q: How fast can an alligator run on land?
>
> A: I've been told in the past by a ranger that an alligator can
> run as fast
> as 35 miles per hour, but not for a long time. But please -- don't try to
> find this out for yourself! As with all wildlife, they aren't likely to
> bother you if you don't bother them. So, stay safe and watch from a
> distance.
>
>
> So that would seem to end the matter right? Wrong. Every source that lists
> the speed of the Alligator is really talking about its short term speed.
> What they really mean, and don't say, is that an Alligator "lunges" at
> thirty miles per hour. In other words for about ONE SECOND it can move at
> thirty miles per hour.
>
> The only reliable study I can find
> (http://www.biosci.ohiou.edu/faculty/reilly/pdfjeb%201998%20201%20
> 2559-2574.
> pdf) was able to verify SUSTAINED speeds, measured on a treadmill, of only
> around 1/2 mile per hour. That being the case, I don't think the match up
> between the bear and the alligator will be much of a race...
>
> Lee "Alligator" Joe
>
>
> Once I knew where I was going, but now I have  forgotten.
> Sometimes my mind
> wanders.  Sometimes it goes alone, and other times it takes me
> along...this
> isn't one of those times...
>
>
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: at-l-bounces@backcountry.net
> > [mailto:at-l-bounces@backcountry.net]On Behalf Of J Bryan Kramer
> > Sent: Friday, February 13, 2004 4:44 PM
> > To: Ken Powers; Shane; at-l@backcountry.net
> > Subject: RE: [at-l] Re: at-l Digest, Vol 10, Issue 10
> >
> >
> > Yeah, well the main point is...you can't hit 30 mph unless you
> > jump off Half
> > Dome or something equivalent.
> >
> > Bryan
> >
> >  >
> > > Per http://www.bear.org/Black/Black_Bear_Facts.html
> > >
> > > Running Speed: Lean bears can exceed 30 mph.  Can run uphill,
> > downhill, or
> > > on level ground.  Fat bears in winter coats overheat and tire quickly.
> > >
> > > I take that to mean that fat bears tire easily after a short
> > > sprint. I would
> > > like to see a race between the two.
> > > Ken
> > > ----- Original Message -----
> > > From: "J Bryan Kramer" <jbryankramer@msn.com>
> > > To: "Shane" <shane@theplacewithnoname.com>; <at-l@backcountry.net>
> > > Sent: Friday, February 13, 2004 1:41 PM
> > > Subject: RE: [at-l] Re: at-l Digest, Vol 10, Issue 10
> > >
> > >
> > > > Ah, I beg to differ. I take it you've never seen an alligator
> > get up and
> > > > run. They can hit 30 mph+ in sprints, probably faster than a
> > bear. They
> > > have
> > > > a high ground clearance mode that they switch to when they
> > want to move
> > > > fast.
> > > >
> > > > Bryan
> > > >
> > > >  Samuel Adams advised, "Let us contemplate our forefathers, and
> > > posterity,
> > > > and resolve to maintain the rights bequeathed to us from the
> > former, for
> > > the
> > > > sake of the latter."
> > > > >
> > > > > > I think I would rather meet a bear in the woods where I
> > > walk!  I would
> > > > > have
> > > > > > died of fright seeing that big alligator.
> > > > >
> > > > > On average, alligators are actually no more aggressive than
> > bears, and
> > > > > actually a lot easier to deal with.  You can outrun an alligator.
> > > > >  You can't
> > > > > outrun a bear.
> > > > >
> > > > > Shane
> > > >
> > > >
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> >
> >
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