--From above, Hog Bayou is a winding ribbon of silver, its water moving slowly toward wetlands and from there into the Wax Lake Delta. Closer up, you can spot the head of a floating alligator, its length a hint of its size and age.... Each inch( 2.5 centimeters) between the nostrils and eye ridge indicates a foot( 0.3 meters) in length, at least until a gator is about nine feet( three meters) long and its girth starts expanding. Above, an osprey takes off from a treetop, probably hunting for fi