…The Difference Between CROCODILES and ALLIGATORS…
…The Difference Between Crocodiles and Alligators…
What a pile of crock!…..GO GATORS!!!….Gators are the best!!
If you spot one of these large reptiles, look at the shape of its snout. If it’s tapered and V-shaped, you’re looking at a crocodile; if it’s wide and U-shaped, you’re looking at an alligator.
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GO GATORS!
~The Baby Boomer Queen~
this page sucks its doesnt even give that much information about crocodiles and aligators.
Hello jaleesa
Thank you for visiting my blog and leaving a comment…there is a great book called Alligators. I can’t remember who it is by…but it is a huge coffe table book. Unfortuneately I lost all of my great books in a fire…Or I would be able to give you more information.
Those of us that live in Florida…know what alligators look like. We see them most days…there is even a joke that they tell…that alligators say ,”tourists taste like chicken”…I gues that is alligator humor…I really don’t know.
I f you live in the US…you won’t be plauges by many crociles as they live in differet re
Here is some more info for you:
A crocodile is any species belonging to the family Crocodylidae (sometimes classified instead as the subfamily Crocodylinae). The term can also be used more loosely to include all members of the order Crocodilia: i.e. the true crocodiles, the alligators and caimans (family Alligatoridae) and the gharials (family Gavialidae), or even the Crocodylomorpha which includes prehistoric crocodile relatives and ancestors.
Crocodiles are large aquatic reptiles that live throughout the Tropics in Africa, Asia, the Americas and Australia. Crocodiles tend to congregate in freshwater habitats like rivers, lakes, wetlands and sometimes in brackish water. Some species, notably the Saltwater Crocodile of Australia, Southeast Asia and the Pacific islands often live along the coastal areas. It is also known to venture far out to sea. They mostly feed on vertebrates like fish, reptiles, and mammals, sometimes with invertebrates like mollusks and crustaceans, depending on species. They are an ancient lineage, and are believed to have changed little since the time of the dinosaurs.
Crocodiles are ambush hunters, waiting for fish or land animals to come close, then rushing out to attack. As cold-blooded predators, they can survive long periods without food, and rarely need to actively go hunting. The crocodile’s bite strength is up to 3,000 pounds per square inch, comparing to just 100 psi for a labrador retriever, 350 psi for a large shark, or 800 psi for a hyena.
Despite their slow appearance, crocodiles are top predators in their environment, and various species have been observed attacking and killing sharks. A famous exception is the Egyptian Plover which is said to enjoy a symbiotic relationship with the crocodile.
According to unauthenticated reports, the plover feeds on parasites that infest the crocodile’s mouth and the reptile will open its jaws and allow the bird to enter to clean out the mouth.
An alligator is a crocodilian in the genus Alligator of the family Alligatoridae. The name alligator is an anglicized form of the Spanish el lagarto (”the lizard”), the name by which early Spanish explorers and settlers in Florida called the alligator.
There are two living alligator species: the American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) and the Chinese Alligator (Alligator sinensis).
Alligators are characterized by a wider snout and eyes more dorsally located than their crocodile cousins. Both living species also tend to be darker in color, often nearly black but color is very dependent on the water. Algae-laden waters produce greener alligators; alligators from waters with a lot of tannic acid from overhanging trees are often darker (although the Chinese alligator has some light patterning.) Also, in alligators only the upper teeth can be seen with the jaws closed (in contrast to true crocodiles, in which upper and lower teeth can be seen), though many individuals bear jaw deformities which complicate this means of identification. The eyes of a large alligator will glow red and those of a smaller one will glow green when a light is shined on them. This fact can be used to find alligators in the dark.
An average American alligator’s weight and length is 800 lbs. and 13 feet long. According to the Everglades National Park website, the largest alligator ever recorded in Florida was 17 feet 5 inches long (5.3 meters). The largest alligator ever recorded measured 19 feet 2 inches (5.8 meters) and was found on Marsh Island, Louisiana. Few of the giant specimens were weighed, but the larger ones could have exceeded a ton in weight. The Chinese Alligator is smaller, rarely exceeding 7 feet (2 meters) in length.
An alligator’s lifespan is usually estimated in the range of 50 years or more. A specimen named Muja has resided in the Belgrade Zoo in Serbia since 1937, making it at least 70 years old. And in Riga Zoo, Latvia an alligator has been living since 1935.
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO…..
While alligators are often confused with crocodiles, they belong to two quite separate taxonomic families, and are as distinct from one another as humans are from gorillas. As for appearance, one generally reliable rule is that alligators have U-shaped heads, while crocodiles are V-shaped - which can be remembered by noting that “A” in alligator comes before “C” in crocodile, and “U” comes before “V”.
Crocodiles have a longer narrower snout, with eyes further forward. Also, if one looks at an alligator and then a crocodile, one will notice a difference in their mouths: only the upper teeth are visible when an alligator’s mouth is closed, while a crocodile’s mouth will reveal both upper and lower teeth, as their fourth tooth sticks out from the lower jaw, rather than fitting neatly into the upper jaw.
Crocodiles also tend to have green eyes, while alligators have brown ones.
Another distinction can be drawn between the jaws of the two animals. Crocodiles’ jaws are much more narrow and are used to tear and grip on prey. By contrast, alligators’ jaws are meant to crush bones, and can deliver a bite force of up to 3000psi (20MPa).
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I hope this was more helpful…
~The Baby Boomer Queen~
This page is awesome! It gives so much good information.
Thank for the Info