Florida Gator

by Patricia Januszkiewicz

Title

Florida Gator

Artist

Patricia Januszkiewicz

Medium

Photograph - Painterly Style

Description

Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Sanibel Island, Florida .....

The name alligator is an anglicized form of el lagarto, the Spanish term for "lizard", which early Spanish explorers and settlers in Florida called the alligator.

Alligators are only native to the United States and China.

An alligator is a crocodilian in the genus Alligator of the family Alligatoridae. There are two living alligator species: the American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) and the Chinese alligator (Alligator sinensis). In addition, several extinct species of alligator are known from fossil remains. Alligators first appeared during the Oligocene epoch about 37 million years ago.

A large adult American alligator's weight and length is 800 pounds (360 kg) and 13 feet (4.0 m) long[citation needed], but can grow to 14.5 feet (4.4 m) long and weigh over 1,000 pounds (450 kg). The largest ever recorded was found in Louisiana and measured 19 feet 2 inches (5.84 m). The Chinese alligator is smaller, rarely exceeding 7 feet (2.1 m) in length. Alligators have an average of 75 teeth.

There is no measured average lifespan for an alligator. In 1937, a one year-old specimen was brought to the Belgrade Zoo in Serbia from Germany. It is now 76 years old. Another specimen, in Riga Zoo, Latvia died in 2007 being more than 75 years old.

Uploaded

November 13th, 2012

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