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An alligator, or colloquially gator, is a large reptile in the genus Alligator of the family Alligatoridae of the order Crocodilia. The two extant species are the American alligator ( A. mississippiensis ) and the Chinese alligator ( A. sinensis ).
Jun 3, 2024 · alligator, (genus Alligator), either of two crocodilians related to the tropical American caimans (family Alligatoridae). Alligators, like other crocodilians, are large animals with powerful tails that are used both in defense and in swimming (see also crocodile).
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
The American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis), sometimes referred to as a gator or common alligator, is a large crocodilian reptile native to the Southeastern United States and a small section of northeastern Mexico.
May 24, 2024 · The American alligator is a species of alligator inhabiting freshwater rivers, lakes, and swamps and brackish waters in the Southern United States and northeastern Mexico. It is one of the best-known living crocodilians.
- John P. Rafferty
- Alligators Are Ancient. Alligators, along with other crocodilians, have undergone very little evolutionary change since the time of the dinosaurs. American alligators appeared about 84 million years ago, and their ancestors evolved more than 200 million years ago.
- They Can't Survive in Salt Water. Unlike crocodiles, alligators don't have the glands to excrete salt from their bodies, so they can't swim in saltwater habitats like mangrove swamps.
- They Can Weigh More Than 1,000 Pounds. The largest alligator ever measured was 15 feet, nine inches long and weighed in at 1,011.5 pounds. This gator was caught in Mill Creek, a tributary of a river in Alabama.
- Their Sex Is Determined by Temperature. One of the weirder facts about alligators is that the sex of them is determined not by DNA but, rather, by climate.
The American alligator is a rare success story of an endangered animal not only saved from extinction but now thriving. State and federal protections, habitat preservation efforts, and reduced ...
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An Alligator, also known simply as a “gator,” is a large reptile in the taxonomic genus Alligator. The only living species in the genus are the Chinese and the American Alligators. They are members of the taxonomic order Crocodilia, along with crocodiles, gharials, and caimans.
