Alligators in the Ottawa River: An Explanation for the Mug-Wump?
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- Опубліковано 2 чер 2024
- Are there alligators living in the Canadian wilderness? This incredible notion, ridiculous at first glance, seems to be supported by both native legends and eyewitness accounts. Join me as I explore the fascinating concept of Canadian alligators.
0:00:00 - Alligator in the Upper Ottawa River
0:02:16 - Alligator Escapees of Ottawa, Ontario
0:04:00 - Hapyxelor
0:05:05 - Pal-Rai-Yuk
0:07:36 - The Sea Crocodile of Lynn Canal
0:08:39 - Black Alligators of Pitt Lake
0:10:12 - Other Canadian Alligators
I’m now hosting videos for an up-and-coming UA-cam channel called ‘True Tales of Buried Treasure’, which presents true stories of lost bonanzas, buried Civil War gold, sunken pirate loot, and other classic treasure stories from the United States and around the world. To check out this channel, please check out the link below:
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I thought Alligators in Ottawa was just a misunderstood joke about swampy politicians.
It's probably both
No, THOSE creatures live in septic pits.
Don’t quit your day job
There are Alligator Gar in the ottawa river, ugly bastard of a fish and aggressive as all hell
everything is possible in this world.. I am a descendant of Borneo natives (River Tribe). The river settlement where I grew up did not have hippos, but there were always sightings of hippos, only they had long necks. My tribe still maintains a primitive life in the wild. most do not go to school and still practice belief in the spirit of nature. When I got the chance to go to school and get to know the outside world, only then did I understand the legends and apparitions from my tribe. according to the western world and animal science this animal should have become extinct millions of years ago. but for the natives here, believe it or not, there are still accidental sightings of these creatures. I'm sorry if my English is not fluent. I just finished school and was appointed as a Conservationist of fauna and flora in the place where I grew up. Forgive me again. Peaceful greetings from me (Dayak Tribe People). 🙏
Brother thank you so much
Your English is excellent! Thank you for sharing the story of the hippo apparitions.
@@rahawa774 Thank you also for all, in my place the water creature(hippo) is named as (tambuAkar) a body like a rhinoceros, big like an elephant and have a long neck.. only it has fur like an otter.. you can search for information about tambuakar to be more clear, even though it is denied by the world of science , but the surprising thing is that it's not my continent where there are sightings, but there are also other continents.. as well as the hairy giant, the red-haired one who likes to steal durian fruit and collect river turtle eggs.. the only difference is that where I live, the hairy giant is considered to be the protector of the forest and respected by our community. This is because if a child gets lost in the forest while looking for valuable tree roots, this creature will send the lost child home the next day. After the child is found, they will tell the kindness of the giant 'orangutan' for helping them at night by hugging the child from the cold, feeding them fruits and so on.. the child's parents will put fruits, and turtle eggs where the child found as a token of thanks. Even modern scholars will not believe it, but the fact is this is what always happens in my village.. The natives are often shy, they will avoid arguing about it, for them that is what actually happens even if they are considered primitive by the outside world..
@@jaygrain2512 most welcome brother 🙏
Not everything is possible.
"Broke free of its muzzle and snapped at one of its compatriots, who had committed some reptilian offense" haha that gave me a good laugh
In 2024 156 red & 25 orange gators are frequently seen on the top of the West shore of the river going through Ottawa, lead by a weasel-gator called Turd-0
In Seattle, USA, locals had long claimed that an alligator lived in Green Lake in the center of the city but city officals long denied that. Finally, after years of ducks, fish, water birds, dogs and cats(and maybe even small children)disappearing, the city officals were forced to set traps and before long captured not one but THREE alligators in the lake. So much for the lake being "too small", the water "too cold", not enough food(not counting all the animals that disappeared of course), just another example of the "experts" not knowing what's going on right under their noses.
Sounds like a citizen released their pets in there.
@@moblack5883😂 That's how it always happens. They are cute when Babies...BUT...when they start growing & growing, people Ditch them in the surrounding waters !😡 There are always crappy owners out there. 😢
Those were camen not alligators similar but smaller most likely someone released their pets in the city lake
lefties come out from under their rocks too and 2wice a month when Trump is out and about!
The simplest explanation is probably monster sturgeon fish
True stories of buried treasures sounds right up my alley. Sweet.
Oh joy! More Mug-Wump! Also, I thought Pal-rai-yuk was more like an otter.
When I was in 9th grade English class, we had “mugwumps” as a word on a vocabulary test. We were taught that the mugwumps was a 19th century term for a politically indecisive person, a “fence sitter.” Of course that was about 65 years ago so I could be wrong…
Interesting! When it freezes in Florida, and other southern states, gators enter brumation (like a low-key hibernation). They float with their noses just above the water so they can breathe when it ices over.
Very interesting!
@@HammersonPeters 10 days ago a Gator Sanctuary in southeast Texas called "gator country" reported to 9news the recent cold snap has forced the gators into " a deep state of hibernation beneath the frozen pond" if you look up 'frozen alligators found in Texas still alive' here on youtube the news report is there. You can see their little snoots sticking up out of the ice! It's unreal...Crocs however it seems need warmer temps to thrive. Love your work by the way
Try that when Ice gets over 4 inches thick and can freeze while ponds / swamps straight to ground if it’s not deeper then around a meter
@@BigpapamoneymanMVPtypebeat My bro, we don't even step on the ice if its less than 6 inches, and it gets deeper than that. Ain't no chance those niggas surviving in any great lake or deep river.
You under-estimate the Canadian winter. Lake Timiskaming is roughly 500 miles north of Toronto, and is firmly in Boreal Tundra.
From the beginning of December until the end of March, the temperature **never** rises above 0 C, and can reach as low as -40 C with the average temperature in this period being -15C
There is 200-600mm of precipitation (snow) during this time too.
Most of the locations they say are too cold to support year-round gators.
Hammerson always dropping the interesting shiz. Thanks for all you do sir.
Thanks for watching! I'm glad you enjoy my videos.
👋!!
Cheers from Okanagan valley British Columbia 🇨🇦
🍻
Hu there Okanogan from the Kootenays.when I was a kid we lived downtown by the Columbia River and I found a baby gater when we had a flood.I managed to keep it alive for about a week.As we had a pet store at the time we figure some parent may have flushed the poor thing.
By no means am I saying all sightings are this but I'm sure some would be...... being a long time fisherman I knew what I was seeing but my heart raced the first time I saw a Sturgeon..... I was on land fishing below a waterfall that emptied into a bowl like bay and had very fast moving water and some sheltered spots. I was casting with 6 pound test in hopes of landing a walleye when what I'd judge to be a 6 foot long Sturgeon came by. My jaw hit the floor. The water right in front of me was a slow spot so I got a pretty good look at it....very clear water It was twice the size of the biggest trophy pike I had seen come out of that lake and almost six times the length of the average walleye. Being a crazy fisherman I kept casting and the creature past me two more times....I didn't expect to hook it but I kept myself aware of how far I was from the boat so I could take twenty steps and jump in so it could take me for a ride should we connect.... a short ride of course with just six pound line. Someone unfamiliar with these prehistoric creatures would surely think they had seen a monster and likely never swim in the lake again. This lake emptied into a river that later joined the Ottawa River....
People get them as babies when they're adorable and can fit in a glass tank. Then they get too big and not so cute and get released into the wild. But that only explains sightings post-colinization. First nations tribes didn't have exotic pet dealers coming up from Florida.
You can have the ones I get behind my house (about 30 miles west of Houston). They usually come out of the water to sun themselves about 50-60 feet from the house. They’re a hoot to watch, though I’m very glad we have a chain link fence between them and us.
I wouldn’t trust my dogs anywhere they happen to be.
@maccam-yc2ry Hunter-Gatherer tribes would have no use for exotic pets that die in a matter of months. Tribes from the climates where those exotic animals live would have no reason or capability to take them to Canada to trade. That's how I know what happened hundreds or thousands of years ago.
@@MakerInMotionso you’re an expert on what every hunter gatherer interaction ever to exist was capable of?
@@fastinradfordable I'm smart enough to know there were no planes or railroads connecting Canada to the sub-tropics. Should I also explain how I know they weren't texting each other?
@@MakerInMotionMy family is Anishinabe Algonquin from Ottawa. There are stories that go back millennia of trade for alligator with southern tribes. They were not kept as pets but as status symbols.
Its nifty that this came out just a few days after the discovery alligators in a frozen solid pond but still alive in Texas. So apparently gators don't mind ice and will just sleep through the water freezing with their noses sticking out of the ice... Maybe y'all should hire a cajun't or floridian to hunt that thing down.
Interesting!
As a Floridian, I can assure you that we are allergic to cold weather. - lol.
That and the fact many of our beaver here up north not only have huts on lakes and ponds but on large rivers and such they will go below water and dig huge holes deep into the banks below freezing /frost lines, and have colonies in the sides of these bank Dens, alligators/snakes , frogs. turtles easily crawl into them and could survive in a 55 degree and up ,den till warmer weather and many have pocket holes for fresh air aside them going dormant till it warms up
It wasn't really a discovery, zoologists have known this about alligators for a very long time.
They live all the way up into North Carolina, and yes, North Carolina experiences regular freezes.
I think the only reason it made news was because Texas freezes way less frequently.
Alligators can only stay like that for a few days, a week tops. Anything longer is detrimental and they may never recover. I lived in Ocoee, Florida for a few years and seen it first hand.
Thank you for all your amazing work
Thanks for watching!
@@HammersonPeters if you release it I'll watch it😃
I can chalk up the more recent sightings to escaped pets. The reports of far older and more northernly accounts are far more intriguing. The reason why is that with the exceptions to some cold harty turtle species and numerous fish, the only cold blooded vertebrates to live in such conditions are amphibians. Ancient amphibians came in many sizes and shapes including some which bore a striking resemblance to crocodiles. They were in fact usurped by crocodilians in warmer climates and supposedly died out during the Mesozoic, after steadily retreating to the poles. On top of that their exist some very large salamanders in China, Japan, and intriguingly the central USA (hellbender).
I can't help but hope that a cold tolerant salamander lived under the glaciers in subterranean rivers that flowed between the ice during the ice age and only went extinct after the glacial retreat, maybe even as late as the 19th century. Unlikely I know but it still gets me excited!
Although alligators don't technically hibernate they can go into a state during cold weather called brumation. In this state they go to the bottom of the water source they inhabit and rise to the surface once a day to breathe. It's possible for them to survive if the water is constantly flowing and doesn't freeze solid. Gators are quite resilient.
Pretty much any day a new Hammerson Peters video comes out will be a better one. Thank you once again for the work and video, my friend.
It’s so, so good to see you back, Hammerson. I love your channel and love the fascinating stories. Thank you!
Always great content Hamerson, just bought your book for a trip to read while heading to Australia 🇨🇦
Thanks so much for your patronage! I hope you enjoy it. Which book was it, if you don't mind my asking?
@@HammersonPeters absolutely !
I just finished the first one and bought the next one for the trip yesterday from Amazon.
I just got mysteries of Canada, volume one yesterday and I’m currently reading mysteries of Canada, volume three. I just finished reading the British Columbia triangle.
Awesome! Have fun Down Under.
Always interesting content. 👍
Thank you for saying so!
The locals artwork on canoes and such, reminded me somewhat of viking longboat art and iconography. Cheers Hammerson, you never fail to produce excellent stories and videos.
Greetings, Mr. Peters, and thank you so much for producing some of the very best and most interesting content on UA-cam. I love learning more about North America, and especially about the histories and cultures of the First Nations. I also love learning and speculating about cryptids; especially the denizens of the watery deeps!
Having studied the subject for decades, I am of the tentative opinion that not all of the great marine reptiles of prehistoric times are, in fact, extinct. I realize that people who fondly refer to themselves as "realists", scoff at such a proposition, but I would counter that in order for an opinion to be valid, it must conform with actual observed reality. The belief in the total extinction of the great marine reptiles is only that: a belief. We (humans) cannot possibly say with actual certainty that we have combed every liter of water on this vast planet and made certain that no plesiosaurs or mososaurs etc. are present anywhere on earth. If one mentions this to a skeptic he will snort in derision and say that "if the prehistoric giant reptiles were alive, then we would SEE them." I counter that people DO in fact see them! Or at least that people do see something that looks very much like them, and with far too great a frequency to be entirely blamable on mis-identification.
Take Ogopogo, my personal favorite aquatic cryptid: Here we have a well-documented animal that resembles a mosasaur (albeit a thin, gracile specimen) more than it resembles anything else. We also have strong scientific evidence that suggests that at least some mososaurs were warm-blooded, (as are some sea turtles). This suggests to me that we may be dealing with at least one species of mososaur-like animal that seems to prefer the colder waters of the upper northern hemisphere. We see it showing up as far north as Alaska, in Lake Illiamna, and as far south as at least San Francisco Bay. -I personally think that the so-called "sea serpents" sighted in said bay may be identical with the creature known as Cadborosaurus, and that this may also be the creature found in Lake Okanagan.
Naturally this is only a supposition. These may be different species, of course, but SOMETHING is responsible for all the sightings of the creatures I've named. I like the skinny-mososaur hypothesis best. There are almost certainly several species of archaic marine reptiles still among us, since the morphology of creatures such as Champ (probably a plesiosaur?) is so different from creatures like the so-called "sea crocodiles" sometimes witnessed around the Irish and British Isles. All I am saying is that we still have much to discover in the waters of the world, and I find that fact endlessly fascinating.
I especially love it when strange beasts, such as reptiles, defy everything that modern science thinks it knows about climate and zoology, and seem to appear in places of frigid cold, or when preposterously huge animals turn up suddenly in relatively small bodies of water, such as in the Irish lakes! Obviously we are dealing with populations of creatures that are on the move, and for whom (short) land-barriers are not always a problem.
I fervently hope that at least one of them will be officially "discovered" during my lifetime, just so as to prove to the smug naysayers of the world that they still don't know everything. Remember, everything that we think we know is only that: what we think... today.
Apologies for this biblical-length comment! If anybody has read this far, I thank you. I'll try to keep it shorter next time.
All the best, -N
I agree, the number of near-identical reports made by sane, credible people, coupled with their eerie resemblances to native legend, make it difficult to dismiss the lake/sea monster idea. You would have gotten along well with Gary. He had a special interest in aquatic monsters.
My gf & I saw what we thought was an alligator in Lake Timiskaming (a hot spot for Mugwump activity). Had me googling this very topic. That body of water is connected to the Ottawa River
Very interesting question.. what’s more is i found an article published in August 2010 titled “How Canada’s Arctic once hosted alligators and turtles’. The location of the fossils is Ellesmere Island.
Well this isn't interesting at all because we know the arctic wasn't always cold.
@@marchfifth1754 yeah, tell that to the climate activists who think the world is warming; of course, that excuse is nothing more than another reason for control of society!
In a northern city in which was born and raised till escaping... There was a pond in a riverside park... Into which a few if not many released gators too big for the aquarium. When was a kid, you could buy a baby alligator at any department store like a goldfish 25¢. There was one known of that for 4 years resided in said pond frozen over yearly... and likewise large river. There are two Nessie type creatures of both folklore and eyewitness of two northern lakes of which have had interaction and was confirmed by locals... Puff:🐉
Awesome love your videos
Thanks for saying so!
You are keeping “Forteana” alive. Thank you for your hard work from a fellow Canuck.
I always look forward to your videos. Thank you so much😊
Great stories!
Muskrat lake/Cobden is just down the way from me, cool!
Ready to go swimming?
As a Canadian Outdoorsman I can tell you without a doubt there is more out there then what you think , I have personally seen unexplainable things
There is lots on parliament hill.
Given what we know about turtles making it through the winter in areas of the northern hemisphere that regularly experience snow & sub-zero, freezing conditions… it wouldn’t surprise me.
The channel Garden State Tortoise (very informative if you’re into reptiles, btw) is based in southern New Jersey, which does get pretty shitty winters, and they keep all their native North American turtles outside, all year. Because that’s what they’re used to in nature. Same with box turtles, and more terrestrial tortoises, such as desert tortoises that get snowed on in winter. They instinctively know what to do… as do the native frogs, newts, and other reptiles & amphibians. The turtles (and I’m assuming alligators) sleep on the bottom of lakes or ponds, or some still body of water, far under the ice, and dramatically lower their heart rate to a near-stop. This enables them to take a huge breath before they dive, and then that sustains them for weeks in a sleeping state. They do periodically awaken for breaths, based on fluctuations in the water temperature. So when it warms slightly, they’ll perk up, take a breath, and go back to sleep on the bottom. This is why we see alligators in the winter in Texas, Louisiana, etc. in colder weather.
Excellent Scientific reply Erik. It definitely sums up what
these animals do when Winter and the freezing temperatures arrive.
I would imagine that, like when Koi ponds freeze over in the Winter, there
would still be pockets of Oxygen near the ice covering to enable breathing
in case open water wasn't found.🦎
Rest In Peace Mr.Gary Mangiacopra
Amen 🙏.
Holy crap, I’ve lived in CP most of my adult life. First time I heard this story! Crazy! 😂
Crocodiles 😊
Another excellent and interesting article Hammerson, thank you for sharing this brilliant video with everyone.
I’m currently listening to Mysteries Of Canada Volume 4 on audiobook and like the 3 previous volumes it’s excellent.
Having also thoroughly enjoyed Legends Of The Nahanni Valley I have just purchased and received an excellent condition edition of Pierre Berton’s The Mysterious North, I found the excerpts you referenced fascinating and had to find a copy for myself.
Thank you for continuing to share these incredibly interesting accounts with everyone. Best wishes to you and your family from England 🏴🇨🇦
Thanks so much for your patronage, and for the kind words! I'm glad you've enjoyed / are enjoying the books!
Really enjoy your videos Hamm.
I grew up around the Ottawa River. Guaranteed the “alligator” was a sturgeon.
I live near ottawa about 45 min west and I agree
So the alligator they have preserved in a bottle is a sturgeon huh? Very good lol
NOTE: By the way the shot of the taxidermist’s young stuffed “alligators” is actually a photo of young crocs!
- Look how “V”-shaped the snout is, compared to the “U”-shaped snout of an alligator;
-There is also the matter of the skin color, which is also that of a juvenile croc. Alligators are almost black on the top half of their body; and
-The glass eyes he used, however, are black like those of a gator.
Last but not least, more than a few of the b-roll clips shown of live “alligators” are instead clips of live crocodiles.
Thank you.
Agreed, definitely a crocodile and they DO NOT survive the cold the way alligators do!
Excellent channel mate,
Private owners have obviously released them into the Canadian wilds when they've become too unwieldy to control..
Rather like the mystery big cat phenomenon in England too.
(Same situation.)
🇨🇦🇬🇧🇨🇦🇬🇧 🙂👍👍👍❤️
I am from the Outaouai region growing up 300 feet from the river in Gatineau Quebec. I have been fishing the Ottawa River or Rivière des Outaouais for the last 55 years. I have seen monster Muskies 4 to 5 feet long. When a big Musky is at the surface its mouth jst below the water line it could be seen as something othe than a fish. Specialy big Gar pike withe their lomg toothy mouth.
I assume these dudes saw Gar Pike and tripped out.
Just googled gar pike. I'd trip out if I saw one as well! I'm from Ontario.
Awesome as always
NEW HAMMERSON VIDEO LLLLLLEEEEETTTTTTTSSSSSS GOOOOOOOOOO
Sturgeons... they have armored backs and the elongated snouts... and they are big too!
There definitely is something big in the Ottawa river. I saw a wake caused by something under the water. It was fighting the current, and the river was flowing hard and brown after the rain.
You have officially terrified me. I paddleboard in the St. Lawrence River a lot in the summer which obviously connects to the Ottawa River. I'm always a little nervous of what's underneath. Anytime I feel even the slightest bump from underneath, my wild imagination goes to the possibility of some sort of shark or Croc or sea/river monster. But quickly snap back to reality. Now it's gonna be a lot harder. Should've not watched this video 🤣 Awesome stuff dude 🤟
Well there are sharks in the st.lawrence
I live on Vancouver Island and we are much much warmer and we don't have Gators
@@Future-Preps35while we dont have a native population in california,alligators have been found out in the central valley delta (east of SF Bay) from time to time
The sea serpents eat them.
Wish we had alligators in Lake Huron.
Why would one wish for Alligators?
Because alligators are cool and had giant ones eating trex cousins 🗿
And good for wetland ecosystems
Though, best in areas where it was historically inhabited, or in prehistory.
You are welcome to have the ones I get behind my house (about 30 miles west of Houston). They usually come out of the water to sun themselves about 50-60 feet from the house. They’re a hoot to watch, though I’m very glad we have a chain link fence between them and us.
I wouldn’t trust my dogs anywhere they happen to be.
Bet you don't have idiots from the city sniffing around the property while out seeing nature.@@dartmart9263
Never Say Never.. They're Probably There. 🙂🐉
As others have mentioned, gators will brumate, which is sort of like hibernate, but being cold blooded, they just reguulate their body temperature, and let their nose hang in the air so the water freezes around them, and they're still able to breath. I know they have gators in Oklahoma, and they can have some pretty bad winters there. They are occasionally found in more northern states, but that's usually just a single one that someone had let go into a pond. Gators and crocodiles are survivers. I would slightly surprised if a breeding pair was set lose up there, and they started their own congregation. But only _slightly_ surprised.
I have lived in Ottawa my whole life and I have never heard this story so thanks for telling it
In the 1970's Toronto Aquarium pet stores in Ontario sold baby Caymen for $199.99 each, so crocodilians were sold in Canada for a time. Sometimes people dump the full grown reptiles on roadsides or in lakes, as they are now illegal to keep in most places and no way to rehome them.
Unbelievable stuff!
Fascinating! Out of all the crocodilians the alligators are the most cold tolerant species and most docile also the much smaller Chinese alligators dig extensive burrows.
Regarding crocodilians cryptids there are quite a number of unknown cryptid species in Africa, New Guinea, Indonesia, Australia, and South America. Certainly more rarer for crocodilian cryptids or out of place crocodilians reported in cooler climates in North America, very interesting, great video!
Also there are even reports of land dwelling crocs one in south America called the urufere from Brazil and Guyana, one in Australia reported from 1870 in Dubbo Australia. No currently reports know but it’s very likely the small dwarf semi
Arboreal land dwelling terrestrial crocodiles
Called mekosuchus still persist in
New Guinea, the Solomon Islands,
And remote South Pacific islands.
I'm old, and have lived on the Ottawa River all my life. I belong to a large family of avid hunters and fishermen. I can remember small alligators brought into local stores to be bought as pets (who thought *that* was a good idea?) when I was a child. Anywhere a species invades, with human assistance or not, they have an opportunity to establish themselves. Alligators can survive freezing temperatures for short periods, by poking their snouts through thin ice, then letting the water freeze around them...*BUT* they cannot survive long periods of freezing in thick ice. Where I live, we have over three months of consistent, below freezing weather every year. We skate, play hockey, ice fish in heated shacks (many people driving out to these shacks in their trucks, which remain parked on the ice), and snowmobile on the river ice, which requires at least 20 to 30 cm (about 12 inches) of *clear blue ice* for safety. There are places where humans cause warm water to enter the river consistently, but an alligator would grow large quickly in such a rich environment, and given that they are cold-blooded and breath air, it would be difficult not to notice them.
There are many things we don't understand in nature, and I hold the legends of First Nations in the highest regard, but no one I know, myself included, has ever seen an alligator in the Ottawa River.
Alligators have been spotted multiple times over the past few years in Michigan too, which isn’t terribly surprising since they can survive being frozen as long as their nostrils are out of the ice.
How many sources of heat like hot springs are nearby these areas?
@@rustymustard7798 no idea, here in Arkansas we have a lot of hot springs but to my knowledge Michigan and Ontario (where Ottawa is and I’m from) don’t, at least none I’m aware of.
They can't survive that long and the thickness of the ice plays a big role. They would never survive the Michigan winter.
@@marchfifth1754True, but if there are places with geothermal or even warm water from factory/power plant outlets it can provide a survivable microclimate. If there are no geothermal sources or factory cooling water discharge then no, they won't survive. I just don't know if there are any. I've worked with gators and other crocodilians for half my life and know that they are tough resilient survivors. If they can find 50 degree plus water in the winter they'll make it, even without a food source.
In New York here, and probably throughout the United States and Canada
we have Hydro Stations with outlets into large lakes. A famous one here was Russell station through Rochester Gas and Electric. The water going through the station and into Lake Ontario was near 70 Degrees Fahrenheit all year round. This was a small station, and I'm sure larger cities have huge ones for their "multiple" Megawatts of power distribution. I'm thinking, in a scientific matter of speaking, that animals being as smart as they are, and driven by instinct, regardless of what tropical species (I could stretch Bull Sharks in here too) would find these "warm water outlets" (which would also be a rich food source) during the Winter months to "wait out" the cold and when the warm returns, make their ways through the tributaries and return to their "Crytid" haunts, then return again each Winter to wait out spring. (If not possible, still a great plot to an "Alligator In Our Lake" movie! ) (Lets not forget the outlet's "irradiated" water and possible species mutations!) WOW! 😃🐉
In New York here, and probably throughout the United States and Canada
we have Hydro Stations with outlets into large lakes. A famous one here was Russell station through Rochester Gas and Electric. The water going through the station and into Lake Ontario was near 70 Degrees Fahrenheit all year round. This was a small station, and I'm sure larger cities have huge ones for their "multiple" Megawatts of power distribution. I'm thinking, in a scientific matter of speaking, that animals being as smart as they are, and driven by instinct, regardless of what tropical species (I could stretch Bull Sharks in here too) would find these "warm water outlets" (which would also be a rich food source) during the Winter months to "wait out" the cold and when the warm returns, make their ways through the tributaries and return to their "Crytid" haunts, then return again each Winter to wait out spring. (If not possible, still a great plot to an "Alligator In Our Lake" movie! ) (Lets not forget the outlet's "irradiated" water and possible species mutations!) WOW!
I never heard of the Mugwump though I come from the Okanagan Valley with the more famous Ogopogo. It’s just as real as the Mugwump and the alligators from the Ottawa river. They wouldn’t last a summer there let alone a winter. Unless they’re pets of Bigfoot aka Sasquatch.
The family of ogopogos are very real.anyone who doubts that is uninformed and ignorant.arlene gaal
Sunnyokanagan( dotco stories of ogopogo 11:38
I've seen the giant black snakes in Nova Scotia..but no gators. Snakes has silverish scales with black diamond outlined design on the edges on the underside
The eastern Indigo snake I believe is the longest native snake in North America*. I can’t recall right now the exact measurement though. But it’s impressive.
* Nowadays, alien species have taken over some parts of the continent, like the Burmese Python, which can grow to “ginormous” proportions
That's the elusive Cape Breton Cottonmouth. It's favourite habitat was the tar ponds in Sydney.
EELS
They can live in the cold they just keep there snout above the ice but I'm hard pressed to believe it
Not as far as Canada, but I hear there was a good sized one in Lake Placid, NY a while ago.
I think I saw a documentary on that once. 🤭
My grandmother had told me a story of Alligators who were able to survive in the north, They used to live in the Boreal Forest but according to her they had been killed by trappers.
Havent bothered to look for information on this story but would be interesting.
Cheers from Metro Vancouver! 🇨🇦
They went to the wrong CA… they were aiming for sunny California but ended up in cold Canada.
Maps and Compasses are Not Easy to Hold with Claws?!
But a GPS might be much Easier?!!
Welcome back!
I remember when a pet alligator or crocodile (I can't remember which) was released into the Niagara River (near Chippawa) and terrorized the local waterfowl for the rest of the year. Was around 1997 or 1998, I think. The story ended up fading and going stale, so I assumed that it froze to death when the seasons changed.
I was at an ojibwe campground somewhere near sioux lookout with my family sometime in the early 90s. We were standing by the lake edge and my step dad noticed what looked like a friggin eyeball poking out of the water just watching us close to the shore. Tried to get higher up the hill to see if there was something underwater there but we couldnt see anything. Tried to toss some pebbles at it to get it to move but it didnt. Couldve been a stick poking out the water with a black speck that was just perfectly placed to look like a pupil. It was so weird though. My step dad tried to get us to go in the water to see lol alligators or crocks dont have one eyeball that extends out of the water about an inch like its a submarine periscope as far as i know.
It’s ridiculous that alligators would populate the Ottawa river. Perhaps someone released them there but they can’t live there permanently.
Perhaps they can deal with some icy waters down south, but that is a far cry from Ottawas winter.
My grandfather and some of his co-workers claimed to have seen one here in Hawkesbury also along the Ottawa river but in a large creek just a short distance from the river. They figured that it had been brought in as a pet by some of the wealthy people in the area, and attributed it being able to survive by the warm water from the paper plant located close by.
Oddly enough that could be true. As here in Australia we had a colony of Barramundi a large tropical fish that 8s mighty tasty that lived in the cooling pond of a coal fired power station down in Victoria. Which was a 1500 km from there natural range
The environments wouldn't seem accommodating.
But, nothing bout nature surprises me anymore ... lol
I was born and raised in Carleton Place still leaving here too, had never heard of this story before.
0:36 the art work is also actually accurate that’s pretty much how are Main Street looks today lol
Also, I don't know if you are familiar with our terrifying amphibious super predators that live in the frigid north. They eat whales, seals, fish and come out of the water to eat people. An alligator would make a great hors d'oeuvre for a polar bear.
I think these are what we call Politicians.
Poor gators. Way too cold for them
And way too close to Ottawa.
Did you see the news last week about the gators frozen in a Texas pond that where still alive and doing just fine with its nose poking out from the ice. Crazy stuff
@@plotholedetective4166 No, I had no idea until your comment. Makes you wonder...
@@plotholedetective4166 I sure did, then the temp went back up to 60F that same day. It never freezes for long in Texas’ gator swamps
@@HammersonPetersyep, gators can actually hibernate similar to turtles and frogs. Im not sure why they don't do it regularly but I found out a while ago when I was checking out a story about gators in Chicago.
5:06 Did you record this footage yourself? It looks very close to where my grandparents live on the Ottawa River. Ill keep it vague but it looks close to a town called Waltham.
No, I got that from UA-cam's Creative Commons.
I think it's safe to say that except for Billy the Exterminator, Swamp People won't be heading to Canada anytime soon. Thanks for what you do. I really enjoy your work Hammerson
The name of the river flowing through Carleton Place, is the Canadian "Mississippi". I'm thinking some old school prankster pulled this off, to have a laugh, and start a tourist attraction.
I got bit by a cougar in Chicoutimi and i liked it. Her name was Mireille
Lived in Ottawa my entire life.
There's no gators here lol.
Now, it's not impossible, where as maybe some animal just got very lost and swam way off course, or some idiot released a pet.
But generally, no.
Nobody here is concerned or even thinking about gators in the river.
Would be the same as saying there's polar bears or penguins in Texas or Florida. Well not impossible.. and survivability again.. wouldn't be impossible (although extremely difficult).
It's pretty unlikely.
Are these current photos of Carleton Place? Looks nice.
It’s a super cute little town with a classic Canadian Main Street.
Maybe they freeze in winter like snakes
I showed the photo of me holding up a 48-inch Gar. A relative asked, what kind of alligator was it. Gar are very common along the Ottawa River. My guess, a few beers, a vivid imagination, a lack of knowledge about fish species and a large Gar and you have... yep, there's gators in the Ottawa.
Wondering how many geologic features like hot springs and such there are in the areas where they're reported.
I live on Ottawa river. Lots gar pike and sturgeons!!
You should look into the pre-flood world in genesis taking place in the Americas during paradise times.
keep hammerin' em out peters
pun intended 😮
In BC we have giant creatures from ancient times in our lakes and rivers. You can hire a guide to bring you out to catch them. Pictures and video don't do them justice.
Drugs are bad
@@JohnHBean maybe, but you can quit drugs. Stupidity, on the other hand?
I have lived my 45 years along different stretches of the Ottawa River fishing, canoeing, kayaking, swimming and snorkeling. There are no alligators! We do have some huge and voracious musky. We also have sturgeon even larger and gar which look like baby alligators. The >2' of ice we get makes survival impossible for any crocodillian.
I heard they like white water rafting in Ottawa, makes no sense this claim
I'm betting sturgeon for all cases that weren't escaped pets, but it's worth noting that gators in Texas have been known to survive their ponds freezing over. They enter brumation with their snouts poking out of the water so they can still breath when the ice solidifies.
I was astonished to see the gold and sasquatch myths mentioned from the lower mainland of B.C.
It was four years ago; I spend a summer and winter log bundling and booming at the far end of Pitt Lake sort. Having the whole blueish green bay to myself in the steep fjords of the Coast Mountains was a dream.
When I'd tow a boom across the bay was the first time I had witnessed a massive sturgeon breach off my bow.
I'm told this is due to the telescopic tube mouth is inefficient at breaking up bottom feed and so occasionally they need to thrash at the surface..
A great white triangle head as long as my arm flashed it's underside to me. In its leap only the top third of its length seemed to even come out of the water ever so briefly.. But distinctively by it's shape and girth..
That glimpse of an ancient lake creature has stuck with me since...
It took some time for the Ontario government to acknowledge the existence of cougars in the region I live in. I myself was returning from a trip in northern Minnesota and wasn't far from the border when I spotted what I first thought was a dog returning home on a snow covered road off the 61 north of Grande Marais and before reaching Grande Portage. It turned its head and the face was unmistakably that of a cougar. If it weren't for the contrast with the white snow I think I would have easily missed it. Without seeing the face my brain perceived it as a dog and nothing more. I've seen pictures but seeing one for myself was the final confirmation that they were here in the north. I think there's many things we have yet to discover. There's turtles, salamanders and cougars in northern ontario. Is an alligator adapting to our climate impossible? Photograph the prints and collect the feces or any evidence you can find. Only way to really make a positive confirmation and warrant further resources and study.
Reminds me of growing up in the 60s, and there was talk of sharks swimming in Lake Ontario (LOL)
There's a large earthwork mound in Ohio called Alligator Mound which is aptly named. Skeptics say its a opossum but to my eyes it definitely resembles a large reptile. At the same time it could be a newt or skink so idk.. Interesting to ponder nevertheless, great video👍
Ottawa citizens got an alligator as a pet decided they did not want it and put it in the Ottawa River or like in the video from Luna Park. Alligators and crocodiles use the sun to regulate their body temperature they would die in a Canadian winter.
2:50 Just to be clear, a "circumference of about 1 foot" is the size of a pet cat's head.
A diameter of about 1 foot would be 3.141 times scarier.
I used to think I was safe in Europe, a long way away from Canadians cryptids. Now I have a Canadian GF, with a brother who is an avid outdoors man...
I guess I'm not going swimming in the ottawa River this summer
Great 😢
No, I don't think it could be a crocodilian. If a real animal is necessary, I'd say maybe a kind of giant salamander, or maybe even something like Koolasuchus.
My family saw a Lockness type creature in a lake called Clear lake in Arden, Ontario off of hwy 7.. there's a lot that we don't know. In North Carolina, you can see alligators with their snorts frozen poking through the frozen ponds.
My Nana on occasion would call me her little "mug wump".... and now I know lol
Edit: I'm remembering now.... we vacationed in gulf coast Florida.... I seem to remember her having fun referring to the gators as mugwumps.... I think I tuned it out just thinking she was being gratuitously silly...until I just came across this connection between the mugwump and the alligator and why she went on about the mugwumps in the swamps and ditches on Sanibel and Captiva Islands.....