The Ameeican Aujgator 7 



Florida and the Okefinokee Swamp of southern 

 Georgia. 



Strangely enough, the only crocodilian which is 

 closely enough related to the American alligator to 

 be placed in the same genus by zoologists, is found in 

 the Yang-tze River of eastern China. This is the 

 small Chinese alligator {Alligator sinensis). This is 

 less surprising when it is remembered that many of 

 the most striking forms of animal and plant life in 

 eastern North America have their nearest living rela- 

 tives in China. This fact is illustrated by the tulip 

 and sassafras among trees, the spoonbill sturgeon 

 among fishes, and a number of common snakes and 

 lizards besides the alligator, among reptiles. 



The food of the alligator consists largely of fish. 

 The young probably eat crawfishes and other small 

 animals as well, and as they increase in size, a few 

 mammals that come to the water and a few water- 

 birds are added to the diet. Large alligators are able 

 to capture animals as large as a deer, dragging them 

 under water to drown and tearing the victim to pieces, 

 often with the aid of another alligator, before swal- 

 lowing. The diet of even the largest specimens prob- 

 ably consists chiefly of fish. The country inhabited 

 by alligators is river-bottom land subject to overflow. 

 During the spring floods, large numbers of fish find 

 their way into the water-holes which are uncon- 

 nected with the river at its normal level. As the 

 season progresses and these holes dry out, the fish 

 become more and more crowded and fall an easy prey 

 to their enemies, among which the alligator is one of 

 the most important, at least where it still occurs. 



Human beings are rarely attacked by alligators. 

 Even where large specimens are found, the hunters 

 and natives most familiar with the habits of "gators" 

 have no fear of them and bathe in the waters in which 

 they live. In this respect, alligators and caimans dif- 



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