Article by Kim Anuszkiewicz
In the Lowcountry, alligators are preparing for their favorite time of year – mating season. After dark, you will hear the male alligators begin their bellowing serenades in search of a mate. Some may find this sound romantic, while others simply find it noisy. One thing is certain – it’s a show best observed from afar!
There are nights you can hear particularly melodious bellows from the ponds around the islands. If you’re lucky, you may find a gator with a voice like Frank Sinatra and moves like Elvis Presley. The call starts somewhere low, deep in the chest of the male alligator. Their head lifted to the sky and tail arched out of the water. Then slowly they release a bone-rattling bellow that comes out like a deep sonic boom carrying for miles. Watch closely and you can see water dancing over the alligator’s back, sprouting and spraying into the air above him as the ultrasonic waves from the bellow displace it.
The charm of their performance is irresistible to female alligators, who move in slowly to begin the courtship. The courting couple meet in the water and gently touch noses, nuzzling, and caressing with their plated armor. A few weeks later, there will be new additions to the gator family – 20 to 60 eggs will lie nestled snugly in a hidden nest near the pond, covered with tree branches, leaves, and other vegetation. The eggs hatch around August or September. Like turtles, the sex of the alligator hatchlings is dependent upon temperature. American alligator’s eggs, with incubation temperatures at 33 ºC will produce males while incubation temperatures at just a 3-degree difference (30 ºC) will produce female offspring.
The gator hatchlings will cling closely to their mother for up to a year while she stands guard against predators. You don’t want to stumble between a mama gator and her nest. If you do, you’ll be on her “most wanted” list faster than you can say “See ya later, alligator!” Alligator mothers are surprisingly some of the best in the animal kingdom. However, even with the protection of a dedicated and fierce mother gator, 80-90% of the hatchlings will end up as dinner to predators or even their older gator cousins – talk about family drama!
The most important thing to remember is to keep your distance for your safety and the safety of our wildlife. Give alligators a wide berth (about 60 feet) and never walk between an alligator and their pond. If an alligator feels threatened they can lunge very quickly and they need to have space and opportunity to escape into the water. Luckily here in the Lowcountry we have many bridges and overlooks where you can stand, look down on, and watch alligators safely. Take joy in how our alligators naturally behave by observing them from a distance!