KSC-2009-3680

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Taking a mid-day stroll, an alligator heads for the woods after crossing the Saturn Causeway at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida in front of the Astrovan with STS-127 crew members aboard. The crew was on its way to Launch Pad 39A for a simulated launch countdown, part of the terminal countdown demonstration test. Alligators can be spotted in the drainage canals and other waters surrounding Kennedy. They occasionally venture onto roads seeking new environs or mates. The center shares a boundary with the Merritt Island Wildlife Nature Refuge, which is a habitat for more than 310 species of birds, 25 mammals, 117 fishes and 65 amphibians and reptiles. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett