An American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) quietly waits for the sun to set over Lake Alice in Gainesville, Florida.

I love gators, and I love documenting why I love them. This gator (probably about 3.5 – 4 feet long – not huge) floated in the water without creating so much as the smallest ripple. Ten minutes later and you’d never see it hovering there. It’s sheer evolutionary brilliance; they are so good at what they do.