Alligator goes viral soaking up sun on Florida beach

(Credit: Lisa Niemiec)

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. – It’s spring and the weather is perfect for lying in the sun, so much so that an alligator wanted to join in on the action. 

Lisa Powell Niemiec was at St. Andrews State Park on Saturday when she witnessed an unexpected sight: a gator in the surf on the beach. 

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“We were fishing and he swam up on us,” said Powell Niemiec to the News Herald. “I think he was tired because of the current in the pass, and he laid there on the beach for a while, then he swam around Deepwater Point into North Lagoon.”

Powell Niemiec posted photos of the gator on Facebook, and they quickly went viral, with more than 6,600 shares by Tuesday morning.  

The News Herald reported it’s not rare but not common to see alligators in the Gulf of Mexico. Alligators prefer freshwater because they lack a salt gland to pump the sodium out of their body. 

Jettys At St Andrews State Park/ deepwater point... He did make his way around into North Lagoon

Posted by Lisa Powell Niemiec on Saturday, April 6, 2019

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