thence west on U.S. Interstate Highway 

 12 (including incomplete portions) to 

 Baton Rouge, La.; thence north and 

 west along corporate limits of Baton 

 Rouge to U.S. Highway 190; thence 

 west on U.S. Highway 190 to junction 

 with Louisiana State Highway 12 at 

 Ragley, La., thence west on Louisiana 

 State Highway 12 to the Beauregard- 

 Calcasieu Parish border; thence north 

 and west along this border to the Texas- 

 Louisiana State border; thence south 

 on this border to Texas State Highway 

 12; thence west on Texas State High- 

 way 12 to Vidor, Tex., thence west on 

 U.S. Highway 90 in the Houston, Tex., 

 corporate limits; thence north, west, 

 and south along Houston corporate 

 limits to junction on the west with U.S. 

 Highway 59; thence south and west on 

 U.S. Highway 59 to Victoria, Tex., 

 thence south on U.S. Highway 77 to 

 corporate limits of Corpus Christi, 

 Tex.; thence southeast along the south- 

 em Corpus Christi corporate limits to 

 Laguna Madre; thence south along the 

 west shore of Laguna Madre to the 

 Nueces-Kleberg county line; thence 

 east along the Nueces-Kleberg county 

 line to the Gulf of Mexico. 



Threatened (Similarity of Appearance 

 to Endangered and Threatened popula- 

 tions) (40 FR 37132, 25 June 1979) in 

 the wild in Cameron, Vermilion, Cal- 

 casieu, Ibemia, St. Mary, St. Charles, 

 Terrebonne, Lafourche, St. Bernard, 

 Jefferson, St. Tammany, and Plaque- 

 mine Parishes in Louisiana. 



States: Endangered: Delaware, Georgia, Mas- 



sachusetts, Mississippi, North Caro- 

 lina, Texas. 



Threatened: Florida. 



REASONS FOR CURRENT STATUS 



Although the range of the American alligator 

 is but slightly reduced from historic boundaries, 

 population levels over much of the present range 

 are reduced due to loss of habitat and overharvest. 

 The low point in population decline was reached 

 in the late 1950's to mid-1960's, and in 1967 the 

 species was listed by the United States as endan- 

 gered. 



Man and his associated technology are the 

 major threats. Alligators were killed for food by 

 the early settlers, to a lesser extent for leather, in 

 many cases out of fear, and because of livestock 

 depredation. It was not until 1855, however, that 

 any attempt was made to take large numbers for 

 their leather. This activity was interrupted to 

 some extent by the Civil War, although limited 

 commercial use by the Confederacy for leather 

 and grease continued during the war (Audubon 

 1931). By 1870, alligator leather again became 

 fashionable, and alligators were killed in the 

 southeast from 1870 until the mid-1960's. Smith 

 (1893) stated that at least 2,500,000 were killed 

 in Florida from 1800 to 1891. Early estimates in- 

 dicate that the number surviving in Florida and 

 Louisiana in 1902 was less than 20% of what it 

 had been 20 years earlier (Stevenson 1904). 



From the late 1940's through the mid-1960's, 

 the remaining wetland areas were opened up. 

 Improved marsh transportation such as airboats 

 and marsh buggies placed unreasonable pressure 

 on remaining alligator populations. Chabreck 

 (1967) estimated that between the late 1940's 

 and late 1950's, populations in Louisiana de- 

 clined by 90%. 



Outright destruction of wetlands has had 

 serious effects upon alligators throughout their 

 range. Millions of hectares of wetlands that at 

 one time were prime alligator habitat have been 

 drained throughout the southeast. Areas in south 

 Florida that harbored impressive numbers of 

 alligators as late as 1954 are now dewatered and 

 in agricultural production (Florida Game and 

 Fresh Water Fish Commission, unpubl. data). 

 Other areas have experienced dramatic changes in 

 annual water-level fluctuations, which have 

 affected populations. Hines et al. (1968) docu- 

 mented severe nest losses in the Everglades due to 

 flooding. Man's drainage and diking activities have 

 increased the frequency and magnitude of water- 

 level fluctuations in the Everglades, resulting in 

 frequent nest destruction, undoubtedly an 

 important factor limiting reproduction in that 

 part of Florida. 



State and Federad protection has reversed the 

 population decline, and alligators are now stabili- 

 zed or increasing in numbers in most of their 

 range. 



The chief threat to the American alligator is 

 now probably the rapid urbanization underway 

 throughout its range and the increasing conver- 

 sion of habitat to recreational use and develop- 

 ment. The alligator is a large predatory species, 

 and, in close contact with human populations. 



