Timber Creek science teacher Rosalinda Scott may seem like any other teacher, but in reality she has experience in something not many other people have: hunting crocodiles.
While on a trip to the Solimoes branch of the Western Amazon basin in a small town called Fonte Boa working with a local church group; Scott’s group was approached by a translator who also worked with National Geographic. Green Peace and many other groups as a wildlife guide, were asked if they would be interested in going crocodile hunting one night. They agreed to the offer.
“My experiences in the jungle were amazing. As a science teacher, I kept having to remind myself it wasn’t a dream. We saw monkeys, pink dolphins, fished for piranhas, and experienced a Discovery Channel dream,” said Scott.
In order to have a successful hunt, many factors had to be just right. They were in small, flat boats at night, using a flashlight to see the reflection of the crocodile’s eyes. The size of the crocodile is determined by how wide the eyes are. They only tried to catch the small ones, which were hiding in the grass next to the water. When they found one they wanted to catch, they moved the boat in the direction of the animal, cut off the boat’s motor and coasted in. The group only had one chance and if they caught the crocodile, they needed to move back out to the water quickly to avoid more crocodiles coming to the area.
Scott not only spent her time hunting crocodiles but she got to experience getting to know the children in the area.
“I spent a lot of time visiting with the children and playing games with them,” explained Scott. “One of my most precious memories is of playing ‘Duck Duck Goose’ with them but with an Amazonian twist. Since they didn’t know what ducks and geese were, we used ‘tambaqui,’ a fish we call Pacu and is really good to eat, and ‘piranha.'”
The experiences Scott had in the Amazon contributed greatly to her skills and knowledge as a teacher. On the trip she was able to observe a different environment and animals such as monkeys, pink dolphins, and piranhas, that she wouldn’t normally be able to see in Texas.
“As a teacher, I learned much about both misinformation and the truth concerning the rain forest,” said Scott. “My experiences in the jungle were amazing and I kept having to remind myself it wasn’t a dream.”
