Is it possible for reptiles out in the wild to high five one another?
It certainly looks like it based upon this video of a turtle and an alligator “dapping” each other up. There’s a chance this was just a “right place at the right time” coincidence, though as you’ll see when you watch the video, the turtle and gator look rather comfortable interacting.
In the clip, the alligator is doing what they’re typically known to do, floating on top of the water with just their head and backs breaking the surface. The sizable turtle paddles its way over to the resting gator and doesn’t appear to have any second thoughts about it.
And the shelled creature would normally want to think twice about approaching an alligator, considering that turtles are often on the menu for gators. They large reptiles don’t prefer to eat turtles, but they’re incredibly easy prey to catch, so it’s often a gator’s go-to meal if it’s really needing nutrients.
But it appears there is some sort of “truce” between this particular turtle and alligator. There’s a strong chance that they worked out an agreement, and they check in with one another from time to time with a tried-and-true gesture that symbolizes togetherness: The high five.
I won’t get into the semantics of whether or not it would technically be a high five since gators and turtles have webbed fingers and that complicates things a bit. Instead, I’ll just direct you to the clip below, which suggests that something shady was going down between the two creatures:
“I know a drug deal when I see one.”
I mean…that’s one of the coolest videos I’ve ever seen. Am I exaggerating when I say that?
Seems like plenty of social media users that viewed the high five footage agreed with me:
he dapped the gator up
— Kel (@Keldxn_M) January 29, 2024
truly a moment
— Terra Mater (@TellusDeity) January 28, 2024
they just high fiving, but with very low energy
— LHSC (@leo_hsc) January 28, 2024
10/10 gator-turtle interaction
— Rob (@EverydayPhoSho) January 28, 2024
