Briar Patch Outdoors

The American Alligator - Part Two

by Keith A. "Bootlegger" Williams

Alligators reach sexual maturity around six years of age and breed in the spring of the year. In doing so, the female will construct a nest of torn and rotting vegetation which is piled in a large mound that are usually around two feet high and six feet across. These are essentially large compost heaps that generate heat for the incubating eggs, while keeping them elevated above the water level. It is interesting to note that a regulated temperature plays a very important role in their development, as eggs which develop at lower temperatures will result in female offspring, and hotter temperatures will result in males. The eggs are white and around 3 inches long. They can range anywhere from twenty to fifty in number, and generally incubate in the nest for about 2 months before hatching near the end of August. The mother will become very territorial and remain standing guard over the nest throughout the incubation. She will never venture far and will quickly chase away anything that wanders too near. When the hatchlings start to emerge, they will call to the mother and she will very gently remove the vegetation from the nest to uncover the eggs. At this time, they will only be around six inches in length and may only be a couple of ounces in weight. The mother will open her mouth and mold her tongue to form a sort of bowl to hold a few of them at a time as she transports them down to the water. This is their most vulnerable stage of life and many will be preyed upon by raccoons, gar, large fish, birds, and especially by other gators. Fortunately, for those that survive, once they reach a length of around four feet, they will have no natural predators, and will have no real fear of anything other than man. Although odd behavior for reptiles in general, the mother will typically stay close to, and continue to watch over them for a year or more before they are deemed ready to be on their own. As size increases, they tend to become more solitary and territorial of others in any given space.

Since alligators are semi-aquatic reptiles, they can function quite well on land, but are most adept in the water. They primarily live in freshwater environments due to the lack of salt-secreting glands but can also tolerate a reasonable degree of salinity for short periods of time. They have been found in brackish water and occasionally even in mangrove swamps. Alligators are carnivores, and are indiscriminate feeders. They will eat virtually anything that they can swallow, to include fish, turtles, snakes, birds, other alligators, and any mammals that may stray into strike range. Their body coloration begins as black with yellow bands in juveniles, and then as adults, it will vary from a deep olive color to a grey-black and blends in with the wetlands surroundings so well that it can be all but invisible to the casual eye.

Often, all that can be seen above the waterline are the tip of an alligator’s snout and his eyes. A surprisingly accurate method of determining an alligator’s total body length without subduing it is to calculate the distance between these two points and substitute feet for inches. An alligator will typically grow about one foot a year for the first five years of life, but afterwards, their growth rate slows and can vary considerably due to environment, climate, and eating habits. It is for this reason that determining the actual age of a random specimen can be very difficult. Records of alligators held in captivity reflect that they tend to live about fifty years, but it is estimated that they may be capable of living to as long as seventy years, under optimal conditions. Past reports have indicated adult alligators in the sixteen to twenty foot range with the possibility growing to potentially larger lengths. While it is possible, there has been a never-ending encroachment of civilization into their constantly shrinking environments and so finding specimens past the fourteen feet length in areas that are easily accessed by mankind are getting to be a rare occurrence. Even at this size however, they can easily weigh in at over 1,000 lbs.

ON TO PART 3 - The American Alligator

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Briar Patch Outdoors
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Durand MI 48429
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