Alligator mississippiensis

Alligator mississippiensis, the American Alligator, belongs to the order Crocodylia, and they can be found in swamps, rivers, and marches. They have nasal disk to help them breath above water, that what we usually see their snouts when they are swimming water. 

The average sizes for female alligators are about 9-10 feet long, and the males are usually about 10-15 feet long. Their legs are short. They have five toes on the front and four toes on their back legs. When they hibernate they keep their nose above the surface. They have osteodorms and scutes on their backs  and they are usually dark brown.  Alligators breed at night. Males often bellow to makes bubbles when they want to attract a female.  They are polygynous and males become territorial and they will found off other male alligators. They may reproduce with more than 10 females in their natural habitats.  Courtship happens in April and then matting occurs in May, they then lay eggs thirty to fifty eggs in June and they hatch in August.  The sex determination depends on the on the temperature, when it’s about 90 ^oF males are produced.  An alligator’s diet typically consists of turtles, fish, snakes, and small mammals.

The picture above is a group of alligators that we saw on our last field trip of the semester. It was fascinating to see these reptiles outside of the zoo, but to be around them in their own habitat. Even though we couldn't go up and pet them, I still found it interesting to see how massive and unique these animals are.