Alligator with Snake
Maria Sibylla Merian
Buy Reptiles Art Prints At AllPosters.com
|
Alligator with Snake Maria Sibylla Merian Buy Reptiles Art Prints At AllPosters.com |
Alligator (Spanish el lagarto, "the lizard"), a reptile related closely to the crocodile.
Kingdom Animalia, Phylum Chordata, Class Reptilia, Order Crocodilia
Alligators differ from crocodiles in several ways. It differs from the true crocodile principally in having the head /snout broader, shorter, blunter snouts, which give their heads a triangular appearance; also, the lower fourth tooth does not protrude when the mouth is closed, as it does in the crocodile. The fourth, enlarged tooth of the under jaw is received, not into an external notch, but into a pit formed for it within the upper one; in wanting a jagged fringe which appears on the hind legs and feet of the crocodile; and in having the toes of the hind feet webbed not more than half way to the tips.
Alligators proper occur in the fluviatile deposits of the age of the Upper Chalk in Europe, where they did not die out until the Pliocene age.
Alligator, large aquatic reptile of the genus Alligator, in the same order as the crocodile. There are two species, a large type found in the S United States A. mississippiensis or lucius in the southern states of North America up to 12 ft. in length, and a small type found in China, A. sinensis in the Yang-tse-kiang.
The American alligator, Alligator mississipiensis, is found in swamps and sluggish streams from North Carolina to Florida and along the Gulf Coast. When young, it is dark brown or black with yellow transverse bands. The bands fade as the animal grows, and the adult is black. Males commonly reach a length of 9 ft (2.7 m) and a weight of 250 lbs (110 kg); females are smaller. Males 18 ft (5.4 m) long were once fairly common, but intensive hunting for alligator leather has eliminated the larger individuals (a specimen over 10 ft/3 m long is now unusual) and threatened the species as a whole. The wild American alligator is now completely protected by law though commercially farmed.
Caimans are similar, but distinct members of the Alligatoridae family found in Central and South America. There are several species, classified in three genera. The largest grow up to 15 ft (4.8 m) long. Unlike alligators, caimans have bony overlapping scales on their bellies. Baby caimans are often sold in the United States as baby alligators. Alligators and caimans are classified in the phylum Chordata, subphylum Vertebrata, class Reptilia, order Crocodilia, family Alligatoridae.
In Central and South America alligators are represented by five species of the genus Caiman, which differs from Alligator by the absence of a bony septum between the nostrils, and the ventral armour is composed of overlapping bony scutes, each of which is formed of two parts united by a suture. C. sclerops, the spectacled alligator, has the widest distribution, from southern Mexico to the northern half of Argentina, and grows to a bulky size. The largest, attaining an enormous bulk and a length of 20 ft., is the C. niger, the jacare-assu or large caiman of the Amazons.
Some crocodiles can be found in salty water, but most alligators stay in fresh water.
The Chinese alligator, A. sinensis, which grows to about 6 ft (1.8 m) long, is found in the Chang (Yangtze) River valley near Shanghai. This species is nearly extinct.
American Alligators spend the day floating just below the surface of the water or resting on the bank, lying in holes in hot weather. They hunt by night, in the water and on the bank.
Young alligators feed on water insects, crustaceans, frogs, and fish; as they grow they catch proportionally larger animals. Large alligators may occasionally capture deer and cows as they come to drink; they are not known to attack humans except in self-defense.
Alligators hibernate from October to March. In summer the female builds a nest of rotting vegetation on the bank and deposits in it 20 to 70 eggs, which she guards for 9 to 10 weeks until they hatch.