June 2002
Everglades Alligator Farm, near entrance to the national park off US 1

American Alligators, Alligator mississippiensis, in the breeding pond.
Hmmmm! I wonder which one is 13 feet long and which is 6 feet long?
Females are typically much smaller (usually around six or seven feet) than males.
They grow about ten inches per year until they are about 4.5 feet long and about five years old.  After this their growth slows considerably.
An average sized Alligator can exert about 40 psi when they bite.
The have 74 to 80 teeth.
Like birds they have a four-chambered heart
They inhabit primarily freshwater swamps and marshes, but can also be found in rivers, lakes and smaller bodies of water. They can tolerate a
reasonable degree of salinity for short periods of time, being occasionally found in brackish water around mangrove swamps.
During the dry winter season there are less fish to eat and due to the warmth of south Florida the Alligators here do not hibernate.  Thus they
can not reduce their energy use and this accounts for their smaller size than Alligators from other parts of the United States.  
During the dry winter season the alligator creates a gator hole to have access to cool water and to attract a large number of potential prey
With its feet, tail, and snout, the alligator uproots plants and removes peat and muck from depressions in the limestone bedrock.  Through
churning up such debris and thrashing about it excavates a sizable hole, which then fills slowly with water seeping from underground. As the
dry season wears on this oasis of water attracts animals. Fish, turtles, snails, deer, raccoons, river otters, herons, egrets, ibis, storks, spoonbills
and others.  The alligator creates a watery sanctuary for animals who might perish otherwise.

More interesting facts:
Outside of south Florida American Alligators hibernate during the winter in burrows that they construct, but may occasionally emerge during
brief spells of warmer weather.
Outside of south Florida America Alligators do not feed during the cooler months and studies in captivity have shown that they generally begin
to lose their appetite below 27°C (80°F), and stop feeding altogether below 23°C (73°F).  They can easily last the winter on their energy
reserves.  Adult American Alligators can survive freezing conditions if they are in water and can submerge their body and keep their nostrils
projecting above the water surface, so that when the surface freezes they can still breathe (called the "icing response"). Essentially their upper
body becomes trapped in the ice.