Beloved sports team mascot, apex predator, survivor – you could use any of these terms to describe the alligator. While these creatures probably walked among dinosaurs, they managed to adapt, evolve
Beloved sports team mascot, apex predator, survivor – you could use any of these terms to describe the alligator. While these creatures probably walked among dinosaurs, they managed to adapt, evolve, and endure over millions of years, and now they are a vital part of our landscape and ecosystem, especially in South Louisiana. It isn’t hard to spot an alligator or two (or a whole congregation!) on one of our swamp tours, you may not know some of the most interesting facts about these beasts:
Alligators vs Crocodiles
Many people confuse these two cousin reptiles, but with a little background knowledge, you can easily spot the differences. Alligators have wider, more rounded snouts, where crocodiles have much longer, pointier ones. When their mouths are closed, you can only see an alligator’s top row of teeth, but both sets of teeth are visible on a crocodile, even when its mouth is closed. While both animals can be very aggressive (trust us, you do NOT want to upset either of them), alligators are significantly less so than their hostile cousins. You will generally find alligators in fresh water, like the rivers and swamps of Louisiana and Florida, but the crocodile has a built-in filtration system that allows it to live in both saltwater and brackish water (which is a mix of salt and fresh waters). Alligators can tolerate brackish water to an extent so you will find them in some of our brackish swamps closer to the Gulf of Mexico.
Gators Go Through Tons of Teeth
Alligators typically have around 80 teeth in their mouth at a time, teeth they use in conjunction with their powerful jaws to clamp down and devour their prey, but they also cycle through their teeth pretty quickly. In fact, alligators may lose and replace each tooth up to 50 times in their lifespan, meaning they will, over time, have up to 3,000 teeth!
