Close Encounters
by Carl Morelli

Read the story below. Then, complete the chart on the next page.

Our expedition was about to begin. We had planned this canoe trip for months, and now here we were, on our own in the swampy backwater of a small river. The guide who dropped us off said our chances for spotting wildlife were pretty good in the dry winter season. So, eager to get started, we got into our canoe and began to paddle.

We pushed along through the murky swamp, and it wasn't long before we saw our first exotic animals. A flock of long-plumed egrets was perched on tree branches overhanging the riverbank. We lifted our paddles and drifted quietly by.

We must have been distracted, because the next thing we knew our canoe ran aground in shallow water. We had to get out and move it to a deeper spot. Just as I put my foot in the water, I saw something moving on its surface. It was a water moccasin, called cottonmouth by the locals. Water moccasins are aggressive, poisonous snakes that live along muddy banks of rivers and swamps. There was nothing to do but wait until it left.

When the coast was clear, we climbed over the side of the canoe, being careful not to tip it over. Our legs sank about two feet into the blackish muck of the river bottom. As we pushed the canoe into deeper water, we kept a watchful eye out for cottonmouths.

A few minutes later, at a bend in the river, something hard bumped into the canoe. It was an alligator! Luckily, it didn't seem particularly interested in us and eventually swam away with an expressionless stare on its face. We spent the rest of the day enjoying the natural beauty around us. But nothing quite compared to our close encounters with the cottonmouth and 'gator!

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