Alligator Bursts From Lake, Launches Itself at Fish: Photos

While hiking through the Myakka River State Park, Florida photographer Timothy Mark Smith spotted something that he had never seen before.

Out of the murky water jumped an 8 foot alligator, launching itself into the air like a reptilian catapult.

"There is no way for a photographer to anticipate a rare moment like this to happen," Smith told Newsweek. "It requires doing some background research to put ourselves in the best place at the best time in order to maximize the possibility to come across something unusual, or possibly even epic. The rest of the work requires great patience.

"In this case, I am very fortunate to live in a place in southwest Florida where these possibilities are all around me," Smith added. "There are wildlife locations locally, which are sought out from photographers around the country."

Smith took this particular photo near the Deep Hole at the Myakka River State Park, near Sarasota, Florida. "It is one of the best locations in the country to find large concentrations of wild alligators," he said. "I started out on this 45-minute hike as soon as the park opened. As I surveyed the pond for the best location and activity, suddenly there was a big splash that caught my attention."

Smith readied his camera, hoping the alligator would resurface. "The gator launched itself one more time, which was the photo that I captured," Smith said. "Using my best judgment from a distance, I would estimate that the gator was about 8 feet long."

It is fairly unusual for alligators to jump out of the water in this way, especially in the wild. "I don't know what triggered the activity," Smith said. "Alligators don't usually hunt that way. They typically stay motionless at the edge of the water and make a shorter lunge, or if the prey is a slow-moving target in the water, they will simply swim on the surface and snatch it up. This gator did not come away with a catch."

Smith was accompanied by a retired park ranger who had spent roughly 10 years at the park. "She said that she had never seen anything like it," Smith said. "I have been in South Florida for almost 50 years, and neither have I. The spectacle was quite shocking."

Smith has been photographing wildlife for over four years, setting up his own photography business alongside his full-time work. "I want my images to stop people in their tracks," Smith said. "I have some of my work displayed at The Cottage Gallery in Nokomis, Florida."

You can view Smith's photography on his Instagram page, @nokomis_wildlife_images.