160 CHAPTERS ON THE NATURAL HISTORY 



vise is but the nip of a fiddler-crab to it. They do not rest satis- 

 fied until the victim is pulled beneath the surface of the water, 

 and made away with. 



A good observer of the habits of the alligator has said " on 

 some occasions the alligators beset the mouth of some retired 

 creek, into which they have previously driven the fish, bellowing 

 so loud that they may be heard at the distance of a mile. To 

 catch the fish they dive under the shoal, and having secured one, 

 rise to the surface, toss it into the air to get rid of the water 

 which they necessarily take in along with it, and catch it again in 

 its descent. When, however, they succeed in capturing a land 

 animal which is too large to be swallow r ed at a single mouthful, 

 they conceal the body beneath the bank till it begins to putrefy, 

 for as their teeth are not formed for cutting or masticating, they 

 are unable to tear the tough flesh in its fresh state; it is then 

 dragged on shore and devoured at leisure." 



In the winter-time, in the most of our southern States where 

 the alligator is found, especially in the more northern localities, 

 it buries itself in the mud at the bottom of marshes and swamps, 

 where it hibernates until the return of spring. If the season be 

 an unusually severe one, they may in these situations become al- 

 most frozen, and it is said that, when in this condition, the rep- 

 tile may be almost sliced into pieces without exhibiting any signs 

 of life. If brought into a good warm place, however, this lethar- 

 gic state is soon dispelled, and the fellow quickly resumes the 

 power he possesses in the summer-time, and his wonted fierce- 

 ness returns. 



Bartram, one of the early naturalists in this country, a great 

 many years ago, claims to have observed in a mineral spring near 

 the Mosquito Kiver, in Florida, great numbers of alligators and 

 fish, although the water was nearly at the boiling point, and 

 " strongly impregnated with copper and vitriol." In the opinion 

 of the present writer, had the alligators been left out, this would 

 at least have made a tip-top fish story. 



Our alligator has a very formidable relative in Asia, known as 

 the Gavial or Nakoo. As the species is principally confined to 

 the Eiver Ganges, it is best known as the Gangetic Gavial. They 

 are easily distinguished from either alligators or crocodiles by 

 their long and narrow jaws, furnished with teeth of uniform size, 

 with the exception of the six anterior pairs, and by the male pos- 

 sessing a great swelling in front of the nostrils. 



