ELEVENTH ANNUAL REPORT. 



145 



■LORIDA CROCODILE. 



dance in the latter state. It would therefore appear that the rate of 

 growth figured in a following list is actually below the normal, 

 rather than above it. The table in question, however, was com- 

 piled from actual specimens and the tape line, all theoretical de- 

 ductions being eliminated. 



Our observations in the Reptile House were made under what 

 we consider the best possible conditions. Our alligator quarters 

 are commodious, giving the reptiles ample room for swimming, 

 while they are provided with banks floored with sand upon which 

 the animals may emerge from the water. During the cold months 

 of the year the water of the tanks is kept heated, by means of 

 a submerged pipe, to a temperature varying between 90 and 95 

 degrees Fahrenheit, while the temperature of the Reptile House 

 ranges from 75 to 85 degrees F. Owing to a generous supply of 

 tropical plants, the atmosphere of the building is very moist. We 

 find that if alligators are kept in water of a lower temperature 

 than that mentioned during the cold months they feed indifferently 

 and irregularly, even though the temperature of the air is satis- 

 factory. They prefer to pass the greater part of their time in the 

 water, consequently this medium, to promote normal development 

 must have a high temperature. The average captive "pet" 



