Well, this is interesting. No, not the discussion of climate change; that’s a given for this strip. I should not be too surprised that Rivera has mostly kept direct discussions to the Sunday panels, from a practical point of view. That is, I could see the influence of the comic syndicate advising Rivera to ease into the subject, given ongoing political opposition and possible negative feedback on the strip, itself.

The interesting part is the suggestion that this location—and that of Lost Forest—is not as far south as has always been surmised. I’ve read that gators are found as far north as North Carolina. But Lost Forest could also be some place up the Mississippi River, given that cargo ships ply these waters. Well, perhaps I make too much of this geographic clue, which is really only here to give Mark a que to discuss climate change. But I think Mark is a little wrong. Alligators thrive in heat, which is why they are found in the south. If they are moving north, I would think it has as much to do with the decrease in original native habitat, due to the expansion of human land use.