Unusual Photograph

Infant ’Gators

The following interesting item is sup plied by Mr. E. Wood, of Neinduk Planta tion, Bainings, New Guinea: — THIS photograph may be of sufficient interest to publish in your journal.

The subject is a one-day-old alligator, together with two other alligator eggs in the stage of hatching.

My labourers found an alligator nest on the plantation a week or two ago and brought home about three dozen eggs, with the intention of cooking them. On cooking a few, they found there were young alligators in them. I procured five of the uncooked eggs and put them in an empty biscuit tin, which I merely left on the verandah.

Last week, the first egg hatched, and two more were cracking, so I took this

photo of them. The two eggs that are cracking hatched fully the following day.

In the photo can be seen the heads of the two hatching alligators, just coming through the shells, while the young one in the foreground was hatched the pre vious day. Since taking the photo, the remaining two eggs out of the five have hatched and the five young alligators are doing well.

It is not often that one can get a photo of a day-old alligator, together with eggs in the period of hatching.

There is a lot of “sac sac” swamp on this property, in which there are dozens of alligators, but this is the first time I have been able to procure the eggs.