American alligator

American alligator at Lover Key 

American alligator Alligator mississippiensis


The american alligator belongs to the Alligatoridae family. 

They are reptiles. The bodies armoured with thick, tough skin and has bony plates (osteoderms), powerful tail and jaws.  The males are fifteen feet and females are nine feet. The young hatch at twenty centimetres with black and yellow strips. The young stay close to the mother for two years. The front legs have five toes and back legs four toes. They have an extended snout with nostrils. The teeth are not visible when the mouth is shut, there are around eighty teeth in the mouth. In a lifetime they go through three thousand teeth. 

The alligator was one classed as endangered but after habitat management, and now the populations are thriving. They can live for around fifty years.

They are found in freshwater, lakes, swamps and marshes.They can not tolerate salt water for great periods of time as they do not posses salt glands. They are great swimmers. 

They are apex predators and vital to the environment and biodiversity. They are opportunities and carnivores and feed on on fish, snakes, small mammals and invertebrates. The prey is consumed whole. They have really strong jaws which can break through turtles shells. 

Females and males are sexually mature when they reach six feet in length which takes on average ten years. Mating happens in the dark. Courtship consists of the males 'roaring' to the females to get their attention, this is also a way of defending. When mating is over the female constructs the nest with leaves and twigs. The female lays around thirty five to fifty eggs in June and July. The eggs are disguised under the leaves and this regulates the temperature. For males below thirty degrees centigrade and females above thirty three degrees centigrade. 

In August the unhatched alligators make a high pitched sound from inside the egg, this lets the mother know they are ready to hatch. The young are eight inches and live in pods. 

Nationalzoo.si.edu, (2015). American Alligator Fact Sheet - National Zoo. [online] Available at: http://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/reptilesamphibians/facts/factsheets/americanalligator.cfm [Accessed 14 Apr. 2015].

Society, N. (2015). American Alligators, American Alligator Pictures, American Alligator Facts - National Geographic. [online] National Geographic. Available at: http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/reptiles/american-alligator/ [Accessed 14 Apr. 2015].