Chinese alligator

Rocky: Male, hatched July 23, 1996 at Houston Zoo. He arrived at the Zoo on April 30, 2008.

Where to find me in the Zoo

Solitude Pond in the warmer months and the Reptile House in the winter.

Fun Facts

• This animal is critically endangered. Probably fewer than 150 individuals are left in the wild.
• The Chinese alligator is a secretive species that spends nearly six months of the year inactive in a subterranean burrow near the water’s edge.
• Compared to the saltwater crocodile and Nile crocodile, the Chinese alligator is a docile species that does not pose any serious threat to humans.

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Behavior

The Chinese alligator is a secretive species that spends nearly six months of the year inactive in a subterranean burrow near the waters edge. Usually a nighttime hunter it feeds primarily on fish, mussels, and snails.

Reproduction

Nesting usually takes place in July or August. The female deposits between 10 and 40 eggs into a nest mound that she constructs from decaying vegetation. The eggs hatch in about 70 days.

Size

Adults reach lengths up to 6.5 feet.

Weight

Adults can weigh up to 88 lbs.

Diet

Chinese alligators are carnivorous. The alligators have blunt teeth, which they use to crush their prey. In the wild these alligators consume mainly aquatic invertebrates such as clams, snails and insects but they will also prey upon fish and occassionaly small mammals such as rats and ducks. At the Zoo the Chinese alligator diet will consist of mice and fish.

Geographic Range

Restricted to lower Yangtze River area in China.