Transcript Of American Alligator ( Alligator Mississippiens )

Transcript Transcript of American Alligator (Alligator mississippiens) SCIN 130 Power Point presentation by Serena L. Sobolewski Introduction: The organism that I have chosen for this assignment is an animal, of the crocodilian family, called the American Alligator. The scientific name is Alligator mississipiens In Spanish it is is called El Legarto, meaning the lizard. The habitat preferred by the American Alligator is fresh water swamps, marshes, rivers, lakes, and occasionally smaller bodies of water, such as man-made retention ponds. The alligator range is from the southern Virginia/North Carolina border, along the Atlantic coast to Florida and along the Gulf of Mexico as far west as the Rio Grande in Texas. I chose this organism†¦show more content†¦Reproductive Ecology: Alligators are polygynous. That means that each male mates with many females. During breeding season, male alligators are very territorial, and they will defend their area against other males by head ramming or attacking one another with open jaws. alligators use a complex series of underwater bellows, sighs, grunts and other vocalizations to attract mates. Before mating, female alligators prepare soft nests of sticks and vegetation. Each female lays 30 to 50 eggs, deposits them in the nest and guards them during the 65-day incubation period. The alligator mating ritual is often called water dancing. The animals underwater mating bellows are so forceful and low that they cause water droplets to fly up into the air, attracting potential mates. Alligators also use these noises to establish territorial dominance and intimidate other animals. Alligators breed in the Spring (April to May). A month after the noisy mating rituals and coupling, the female lays up to 50 eggs in a large (thre e feet tall and six feet wide) nest she constructed of mud, leaves and twigs on dry ground. The rotting vegetation in the nest warms the eggs. The temperature of the nest determines the sex of the hatchlings. If the eggs are incubated over 93 degrees Fahrenheit (34 degrees Celsius), the embryo develops as a male; temperatures below 86 degrees Fahrenheit (30 degrees Celsius) result in female embryos,