Alligator or Crocodile, which one is bigger?

Question

Alligator or Crocodile, which one is bigger? Which one is stronger? What is the difference?

Answer 1

every one els has said all there is to really know, BUT
saltwater crocadile's are the bigest and strongest.
and more aggressive

Answer 2

They belong to different families, There are three groups (families) of crocodilians: the alligatoridae, which includes the alligator and the caimans; the crocodylidae, which includes the "true" crocodiles; and the gavialidae, which contains only the gharial.
They differ in the following:
Shape of the jaw: Alligators (and caimans) have a wide "U"-shaped, rounded snout (like a shovel), whereas crocodiles tend to have longer and more pointed "V"-shaped noses.

Placement of the teeth:
In alligators, the upper jaw is wider than the lower jaw and completely overlaps it. In crocodiles, the upper jaw and lower jaw are approximately the same width

Lingual salt glands: Crocodiles and gharials also differ from alligators and caimans in having functioning salt glands on their tongue

Differences in behaviour are also apparent. Most people regard crocodiles as more aggressive than alligators, and this is true of some species. For example, alligators are relatively docile next to saltwater crocodiles, but there are many species with many differerent kinds of behaviours and temperaments. A general rule that crocodiles are more aggressive than alligators just isn't possible to make. Alligators can often reach at least 14 or 15 feet in length, which is larger than some crocodile species, but not others. The largest crocodile species is the saltwater crocodile, which can get to at least 17 or 18 feet - some rare individuals exceeding 20 feet after many years. The African dwarf crocodile, as a contrast, doesn't grow larger than 4 or 5 feet.

Answer 3

Which is bigger? Depends on the species. There are 23 species of crocodilian. 2 alligators, 1 gavial, 6 types of caiman. Some are bigger, some are smaller. I only have one arguement for prthyu, alligators do NOT often reach sizes of 14-15 feet. In central Florida, average is about 7 1/2 feet long for a wild alligator. 10 feet is a large adult. In my area of Florida (east central), other than a few alligators that I have seen that were taken during the public hunt, that were definitely over 13+ (very few), I'm guessing there have only been TOPS 3 or 4 wild alligators that I have seen that I would guess to be into and above 13 feet. Anything that big is a monster for an alligator, I don't care where you are.

They've both got about the same strength as per body size. BUT, if you talk to people who work at or run alligator farms where some crocs are housed in what I call "general population" along with the alligators (mostly American crocs) Crocs will start the fights, but the broader size of an alligator's snout usually makes them (the gator) the winner. On an average bite, 8+ foot alligators and crocodiles have jaw pressure of about 2,000 psi. Get a big one mad, though and it will break your hydraulic bitemeter that's supposed to be able to withstand 5,000 psi.

Now, because I've answered your last question a million times I'm just gonna copy/paste from a previous answer of mine.

Overall, alligators tend to be charcoal grey to black with lighter bands; crocs range anywhere from olive drab to golden khaki.

Now, starting with the nose, working our way back to the tail.....


Alligators have two nasal discs that their nostrils sit on, crocs have a single nasal disc with both nostrils on it.

The teeth on a gator's lower jaw fit into sockets in the upper jaw, giving them the appearance of having an overbite. Crocs have teeth sticking out all over the place, the most prominent being the fourth tooth from the front on on both sides (these sometimes stick up above the top of the upper jaw in some species).

Alligator teeth are conical and spikelike, croc teeth are shaped more like daggers.

The inside of a gator's mouth is almost almond colored, crocs have an orangeish color inside their mouth. (I hope you never have to identify one or the other by the color of the inside of it's mouth.)

Alligators have a broader, rounder snout, crocs have a narrow, pointy snout.

Gator eyes sit higher on the head than croc eyes. Gator eyes are golden, croc eyes are green.

The osteoderms (or scutes, or 'bumps' if you want to be completely simple about it) on an alligator's back are in straight rows, croc's have their scutes more scattered, ranging down onto their sides and in some cases depending on species these scutes are even present in the belly skin. Not as big as those on the back, but still.

Crocs have more webbing between their back toes than gators.

The 'fins' on alligator and crocodile tails.... the best way to describe the difference here is to think of looking at a '55 Chevrolet and a '57 Chevrolet, the alligator is the '55, the croc's the '57, much more pronounced tail scutes.


I hope that's enough info for you.

Answer 4

Strait from Wikipedia...

Croc's-
Large species can reach over 5 or 6 meters long and weigh well over 1200 kg. 1 meter = 3.281 ft ... so 6 meters is 19.686 ft. The Largest ever recorded is 8.64 m which is a little over 28 ft!

Alligators-
An average American alligator's weight and length is 800 lbs. and 13 feet long. According to the Everglades National Park website, the largest alligator ever recorded in Florida was 17 feet 5 inches long (5.3 meters). The largest alligator ever recorded measured 19 feet 2 inches (5.8 meters) and was found on Marsh Island, Louisiana.

the croc would be the stronger of the two due to similar body designs on a larger scale.

as for the diffrences..

1. Different families
2. Shape of the jaw
3. Placement of teeth
4. Lingual salt glands
5. Integumentary sense organs
6. Size

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