aligators and crocodiles...?

Question

whats the difference? how can you tell them apart?

Answer 1

Ok, here we go AGAIN.


I'm starting at the nose, working my way back after a quick overview on coloration and range...

There are only two types of alligator, the American alligator and the Chinese alligator.

Including caimans and gavials, there are 21 species of crocodile, found in tropical waters worldwide.

Alligators are charcoal grey to black with yellowish bands, crocs can be anywhere from olive drab to golden khaki.


Alligators have a broad rounded snout, appear to have an overbite (teeth on the bottom jaw fit into sockets behind the teeth of the upper jaw). Alligator teeth are conical and spikelike. Alligators nostrils sit on two nasal discs.

Crocodiles have more slender, narrow snouts with bottom teeth visible (most prominently the fourth tooth from front, sometimes sticking well above the top of the upper jaw depending on species). Their teeth are dagger shaped, and they have a single nasal disc with both nostrils on it.

The inside of an alligator's mouth is an almond color, the inside of a croc's mouth is orangish.

The osteoderms (or scutes or "bumps" if you want to be completely unscientific about it.) on an alligator's back are in straight rows, and do not spill down onto it's sides. Croc's scutes are more pronounced, not as neatly ordered, and some species of crocodiles have osteoderms all the way into the belly skin.

Crocs have more webbing on their back feet than alligators.

Comparing tail scutes, picture a '55 Chevrolet and a '57 Chevrolet. The '55 is a gator, the '57 is a croc, much more pronounced tail fins.

Most, but not all crocodiles attain larger sizes than alligators.

Crocodiles are responsible for many more human fatalities than alligators (compare 25 human fatalities from gators in 50 years in Florida to 300 people a year on average from Nile Crocs in Africa.)

You want more specifics? I can give them.

Answer 2

Well that's an easy one. Crocodiles for a start, have a more pointed snout than Alligators. However, the best way to tell the difference, is by looking along the jawline. Crocodiles have a groove on either side of the maxilla, which allows a lower jaw tooth to more or less, slide into place when the jaws are closed. Also, Alligators have a rounder & more blunt snout. At the same time, however, an American Alligator can bite with more force than almost any living animal. Up to 3,000lbs of crushing force per square inch. Furthermore, Alligators can in fact, be far more aggressive than Crocodiles. I learnt this myself, when working with live Crocodilians. The reason they behave in such a way, is due to the structure of the brain. An Alligator has an unusual looking brain, which has a very large region dedicated to smelling things, & a very small region dedicated to processing information. Crocodiles on the other hand, will plan their attacks ahead of time. This ability has been observed in Nile Crocodiles, in Africa. One of their principal sources of prey is the Gnu. Known otherwise as the Wildebeest. The Nile Crocodiles will watch them drinking from the river, while standing on the embankment & over a period of several weeks, they will come to recognise a pattern. For example, how often they come to drink, what time of day & more importantly, exactly where & when to attack. Alligators will attack anything they perceive as a food item. Take a plush toy, & dip it in fish oil. The Alligator will go for it without thinking. In a nutshell, it's bite first & ask questions later. However, the Crocodiles will attack in a certain way. When they're ready to attack, the Crocodiles will float motionlessly in the water with only their eyes & nostrils above the water. They assess the situation, & then drop back beneath the surface, with barely a ripple. Then comes the underwater stalking method. And this is where it gets interesting. They slowly swim along & as they come into the shallows, they know that to avoid being detected, they have to tip-toe on their claws. By doing so, they avoid putting their feet on the river bed & bringing up a load of silt, which would be quickly noticed by the Wildebeest & would send them running. Around a Crocodile's lower snout, basically on the chin, are small black spots. Nobody is entirely sure what they are used for, but it is believed they are used in the same way a cat will use it's whiskers to detect it's immediate surroundings in areas of low visibility. The Crocodile will sit for several seconds in water as deep as 12 inches, just a foot deep. In a way, they test the herd. A sudden an uncoordinated attack would be pretty disastrous. Hereunder, the reptile will watch for several seconds, before swishing its powerful tail & launching a full-scale assault on the Wildebeest, something that takes them by such surprise, they don't have the time to react. I've seen on a wildlife documentary, how the whole attack was coordinated & the Wildebeest did not stand a chance against the Crocodiles. One of the animals was grabbed around the head by an enormous Crocodile & was lifted all the way off the embankment & was brought down against the water with so much force, it wouldn't be surprising to learn that the animal's back may have been broken on impact. In the end, I would say it's not really aggression that makes an animal dangerous. It's the intelligence & the ability to learn that makes them so deadly. It's the same with human beings. We have such an amazing ability to learn & create objects that, all it takes, is a simple design & then somebody only has to make a simple modification, which will make that design even more hi-tech or useful or even dangerous.

Answer 3

The best way to tell is by the jaw/mouth. A Crocodile's jaw is narrow and both top and bottom teeth stick out. Where as an Alligator's jaw is broad and usually the top jaw teeth are the only ones you can see! My source also has a picture of what it looks like and more ways that you can tell the difference.

Answer 4

Aligators are shorter and stockier through the body as well as the snout. All aligators are found in the Americas, particularly the southern US. Crocodiles, on the other hand, are longer and more slender. They can be found in Africa, tropical Asia and Australia. Some crocodiles can exist in salt water, whereas aligators do not.

Answer 5

The easiest way to identify the difference between an alligator and a crocodile is that when it's mouth is closed, a crocodile's bottom teeth show while an alligator's doesn't (though you'll often see some of the alligator's front, top teeth). Also, an alligator's bottom jaw is larger than its top jaw.

Answer 6

While everyone is right about telling alligators and crocs apart, it is worth noting that in the United States it is rarely a problem determining the difference as they have different habitats and locations for the majority of their ranges. Crocs are only found in extreme southern Florida while alligators occur in that extreme southern portion of Florida but also in the rest of Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, southern to mid Arkansas, South Carolina, Mississippi, etc.

Answer 7

The easiest way of telling them apart is the shape their noses. Alligators have a U-shaped, rounded snout and crocodiles have longer, pointed V-shaped noses.

Answer 8

When looking at the pictures of heads, crocodyles have heads that are slighty narrow and that taper towards the nose. They usually have exposed teeth. Alligators have heads that are more broad.

Answer 9

Alligators are smaller, have a broader nose/head and are much less aggressive!

Answer 10

Yes.