Alligators are only native to 3 countries around the world, but America is home to the biggest population. Here, there are over 5 million gators. There’s also a few in a tiny piece of northeastern Mexico. And, interestingly, there are also wild alligators in China, but we’ll get to those in a minute. Let’s look…
Author: Tidewater Teddy
Hey, I’m Tidewater Teddy: your source for nature, travel, photography, and random philosophical musings.
Stock Photography is Dying
Generative AI is sending traditional stock photography into a death spiral. In response, two stock photography giants, Getty Images and Shutterstock, are merging to take advantage of the AI market. For the companies, stock prices are up, but for the photographers, pay will probably go down. Understandably, photographers (including myself) aren’t happy about it.
Scuba Diving in Nasty, Polluted Water
Deep, murky water. That’s something that instills fear in a lot of people. Normal, sane people stay far, far away from the gloomy depths. Not my younger self. You see, for a year or so, I had a side hustle diving underneath boats and inspecting them. I’d get a call that a boat wasn’t handling…
Relaxing Underwater Footage from Florida Keys
Last week, I dived the Florida Keys for the first time (shocking, I know), and it was incredible! I specifically wanted to make a longer video with peaceful underwater footage showing the beautiful coral reefs and the colorful fish and other sea animals. For me, the dives were very soothing, and I really enjoyed blowing…
Tying a Bowline with One Hand
As a Captain and a Divemaster, I’ve had to study the bowline knot with almost religious fervor. Thus, it’s the primary knot I know and remember, and perhaps, the only knot I can tie one handed. Back in 2019, I filmed myself tying a bowline with one hand. You can watch it here: The video…
Riding a Japanese Ferry – The Tachibana Maru
As an island nation, Japan has many ferries connecting its numerous islands, and they are critical lifelines for the island communities they serve. When my wife and I visited Japan in September 2024, we went out of our way to ride one of these ferries, the Tachibana Maru. This ship runs a route along the…
Bizarre Sea Creatures of Japan’s Izu Peninsula
While scuba diving in Japan’s Izu Peninsula, I encountered many bizarre sea creatures. From peacock wrasse to porcupinefish, there’s all sorts of weird critters here.
How Dangerous are Lionfish???
Lionfish are like living naval mines. See those long fins that look like a lion’s mane? Yeah, those are all venomous spines. For an unwary swimmer or diver, these spines can pack quite a punch. But how dangerous can this “punch” truly be? Let’s put on our scuba gear and find out for ourselves!
The Legendary Dragon Moray
This is the dragon moray (Enchelycore pardalis), aka the leopard or tiger moray. With its impressive colors and mythical features, you can see where it gets the name. I mean, it looks like a legendary beast you’d find in a video game. Unlike typical morays, the dragon moray has curved jaws that prevent it from…
Feeding Bowing Deer in Nara, Japan – 奈良で鹿に餌をやる
Nara is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Japan, and it is rich in history and nature. Here, there are over 1200 deer that roam the city’s numerous parks and temples, and you can feed them rice crackers called shika senbei or “deer cookies” (鹿せんべい). Known as shika deer, their name comes from…
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