FEATURED ANIMAL!!

FEATURED ANIMAL:
AMERICAN ALLIGATOR!

We spent the weekend in Florida and took an awesome air boat ride to see if we could find alligators and WE DID! We saw several areas where there were babies and we saw one mother alligator warming herself in the sun! Come learn about these ancient reptiles!

   Range/Habitat: Southwestern United States/ wetlands, swamps,

rivers,lakes, ponds

   Diet: Carnivore: fish, deer, mammals

   Length/Weight: 9 ½-16 ft/ 200-500 lbs

   Conservation Status: common

Fun Facts:

• Alligators are large, territorial and fierce reptiles.
• They have been on the planet for millions of years.
• Male alligators bellow or roar to attract females.
• Female alligators lay 25- 60 eggs in a nest build of mud and vegetation.
• They guard the nest from predators, such as raccoons.
• When the baby alligators hatch they are all female or male.  The temperature of the nest determines the sex of the babies.
• The temperature at which their gender is determined is 90 degrees.
• Once they begin to hatch, the mother helps dig open the nest.
• She protects them from predators by carrying them around on her head or in her mouth.
• Baby alligators stay with their moms for around 3 years.

Alligators are so cool. The males can get up to 1,000 lbs. They get a bad rap, but they really want to mind their own business. Alligators were on the verge of extinction 40 years ago, but with great effort they are thriving in the Southeastern United States! We love a great conservation success story!