How fast do alligators grow

Female alligators rarely exceed 10 feet in length, but males can grow much larger. Alligator Alligator mississippiensis. Enlarge Image. Baby alligators may stay with their mother for a few days to a month, after hatching one may see young alligators basking in the sun on their mother's back A distressed cry from a young alligator could get the attention of a female or even a male. Alligators can hear underwater. An alligator has eighty teeth. The life expectancy of a gator, if it lives past 2 years, is 50 years.

Don't approach or tease alligators, even on land they are quite agile. The unofficial Florida record is 17'5" Lake Apopka The world record is 19'2" Louisiana. Ponds, swamps, rivers, freshwater and brakish marshes, mangroves, canals. Female alligators rarely exceed 10 feet in length, but males can grow much larger. Nearly all alligators become sexually mature by the time they reach approximately 7 feet in length although females can reach maturity at 6 feet. A female may require years and a male years to reach these lengths.

Courtship begins in early April, and mating occurs in May or June. Females build a mound nest of soil, vegetation, or debris and deposit an average of 32 to 46 eggs in late June or early July. Incubation requires approximately days, and hatching occurs from mid-August through early September. The average clutch size of an alligator nest is For nests that survive predators and flooding, an estimated 24 live hatchlings will emerge.

Only 10 alligator hatchlings will live to one year. Of these yearlings, 8 will become subadults reach 4 feet in length. The number of subadults that reach maturity 6 feet in length is approximately 5. These estimates are for a growing alligator population. As a population matures and has a higher percentage of large alligators , the survival rate would be expected to be lower, in part due to a higher rate of cannibalism. Eggs: Alligator eggs are susceptible to drowning, being crushed by the female, predation, and other less common calamities.

Raccoons are the primary predator, although hogs, otters, and bears have been reported to depredate nests. Juveniles: Small alligators are eaten by a variety of predators including raccoons, otters, wading birds, and fish; however, larger alligators may be their most significant predator. Adults: Cannibalism, intraspecific fighting, and hunting by humans are probably the most significant mortality factors. Live Alligator Show. Animal Sanctuary.

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