Cranes lead tiny alligator crossing the street back to its turf [Video]

• While on a drive with her family, Mallery Neptune spotted a tiny alligator crossing the street, with a group of cranes following him.
• Mallery realized that the alligator left the pond and went to the other side of the street, which is the cranes’ turf.
• The cranes led him back to the pond to protect their territory, and they did it very gently!

One fine day, on the family’s way to an arts and crafts store in Saint Cloud, Florida, Mallery Neptune spotted an unusual animal interaction on the street.

“Out of the corner of my eye I saw something moving in the grass,” Mallery told The Dodo. “My arm flung [out] and hit my husband in the chest and I yelled, ‘Babe! Stop the car! There’s an alligator crossing the road!’ He hit the brakes and we watched the scene unfold.”

“I was really hoping it would stay family-friendly since my little guys were in the car with their eyes glued on the alligator,” she added.

It was a small alligator making his way out of the grass, crossing the road, and a family of cranes were trailing him! Mallery realized that the alligator was heading to the cranes’ turf, which is across the lake where it lived. But the cranes wanted to protect their territory, and so they led the alligator back to where it belongs.

“The cranes were on his tail,” Neptune said. “At first, it looked like a game of follow-the-leader, but once the alligator was in the street, the cranes went ahead to guide him home.”

The cranes were pretty smart, but gentle. They made sure to smoothly block the alligator from the grass, with their wings spread.

“It was amazing to see them use their wings to increase their size and redirect the alligator,” she said. “They were definitely a team working as a united front.”

That gesture was successful in sending the little alligator to the opposite direction. He got the message and right away returned to the pond on the other side of the street.

It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for Mallery and her family.

“We have seen alligators sunbathing around the ponds, but we have never witnessed one crossing the street or interacting with cranes in this manner,” Mallery said. “It was so much fun to witness these amazing animals!”

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A post shared by Mallery Neptune (@ethicallymallery)

Initially, the mom of two thought of sending the video only to her dad, but because it made her laugh, she decided to share it with the world. And the video has now gone viral.

“I decided to post it because the whole interaction was making us laugh, and I thought some of my friends might enjoy the laugh, too,” Mallery said. “Laughter is contagious and we could all use some good laughs right now.”

Source: The Dodo