The American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) is a large reptile that inhabits the wetlands, marshes, ponds, rivers and lakes of the southeastern United States.
These alligators range from coastal North Carolina southward to Florida, and westward through Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, southeastern Oklahoma, southern Arkansas, and eastern and southern Texas.
Their range in Texas, however, has been altered drastically over the past several decades. At one time their range could be drawn in a jagged line extending from the Red River to Dallas, through Waco, curving toward Austin to San Antonio and down to Laredo.
Today, alligators in these areas are rare. Instead, they thrive in the areas of more moisture east of I-35 in places such as Nacogdoches, Houston, Victoria and Corpus Christi.
Alligators are the largest reptiles in the United States. Adult male alligators, known as “bulls,” can achieve lengths of up to 14 feet in Texas, while the record bull was 19 feet, 2 inches in Louisiana. Large males may weigh more than 700 pounds, although most alligators in the wild today average less than 10 feet and weigh less than 250 pounds.
Alligators also have long lives, with up to 75 years in captivity.
The alligator on exhibit at the Abilene Zoo has been there since the mid-1950s.
The dietary requirements for this species is varied, to say the least, so dietary requirements may be too loose of a description.
It may be better to say that just about any smaller invertebrate or vertebrate animal that it can overpower and swallow may be consumed.
Of course, the diet changes as the animal matures, with most baby alligators feeding on crawfish, minnows, spiders and other insects.
As they mature, their diets reflect the change in size, as most adult gators will consume mostly vertebrate animals such rabbits, otters, raccoons, opossums, wading birds and even small deer.
Animals usually are ambushed as they approach the water to drink. Occasionally other reptiles such as snakes, lizards and turtles are preyed upon. Many large water turtles in the range of the alligator can be observed with large scars on their shells, telltale signs of an epic struggle for survival.
Breeding season for alligators occurs in the spring and can be quite an adrenaline rush for those who have never heard the bellowing of a large bull. Males congregate for short periods during the evening, each attempting to bellow louder than the others in an effort to attract a female. Once a male has selected a mate, they breed.
Females construct a nest mound manufactured from grasses, mud, cattails and bark. Once 15 to 50 eggs are laid in the nest, the female lies on top of it to protect the incubating eggs from predators such as raccoons. Hatching occurs in late August, and the 8-inch young emerge from the nest under the supervision of the mother. The young stay with the mother for up to a year, sheltered from predators. The most dangerous predators to a young gator, besides man, are other alligators.
Alligators almost were driven to extinction in the early 1900s by hunters in the skin market. In 1967, they were listed as an endangered species on the federal level, and Texas listed them as endangered in 1969. Once this occurred, the population of this remarkable beast began to grow at an accelerated pace, so much so that the state of Texas began to allow harvesting of alligators on a closely monitored basis in 1984.
In 1987, a mere 20 years after being listed as endangered and on the brink of extinction, the alligator was removed from the endangered species list. However, it is still afforded some protection in Texas as it is considered a game animal with limited harvesting available.