Crocodiles and Alligators

by Abyan Reyshad Iswantoro

Would you be confused if I asked you, “What is the difference between Crocodiles and Alligators”? Most people have no idea because they both have their similar Dino/Reptilian look. In fact, most people think these terms are interchangeable and are describing the same animal simply in different countries. However, they are in fact different species. We will compare them using their physical traits, behavioural traits and taxonomy. Let’s have a look at the difference and similarities between Crocodiles and Alligators.

Despite having similar physical traits, they kind of look different. Crocodiles and Alligators have different mouths, a Crocodile’s mouth has a, “V” shape while Alligators have more of a, “U” shape. The Crocodile’s iconic, “V” shaped mouth is designed to eat small preys such as insects, fish, small frogs, and crustaceans because their mouths are very quick and flexible. While the Alligator’s, “U” shaped mouth is designed to eat big mammals such as deer and racoons because alligators have very big bone crushing mouths compared to crocodiles. If you ever thought that Crocodiles and Alligators are both green, then you’re wrong. Crocodiles have a very light colour compared to Alligators, why? It’s because Crocodiles live in coastal habitats so they’re light colour really blends in to grass, dirt and sand. While in the other hand Alligators have a very dark colour, almost black. This is because unlike Crocodiles, Alligators live in swamps, and slow-moving rivers. Swamps and slow-moving rivers have very dark water so the Alligator’s colour blends in perfectly to their habitats.

Not only they look different, but they also act a little different. In comparison, Alligators seem way more tamed compared to Crocodiles but they can still attack any living thing if they wanted to. The way they both communicate to their own kinds is very unique, Crocodiles communicate using threat calls, distress calls and infrasonic “booming” sounds. Unlike Crocodiles, Alligators don’t have vocal cords to produce that kind of sound so Alligators usually bellows, growls, hisses, roars and even use a cough to communicate. “Do they even have something in common?” you may ask. Yes, they do have something in common which is the way they kill their prey. Alligators and Crocodiles both pull their preys underwater to be drowned and devoured on but it doesn’t mean that they hunt the same way. Crocodiles live in coastal area so they usually pick on anything near the swamp or river. Alligators live in the middle of the swamp or river so they pick on animals swimming next to them. Alligators are more opportunistic than Crocodiles so it’s possible that they can hunt animals located in shore just like Crocodiles but that is rather uncommon.

Lastly, we can compare these animals through their taxonomy. They both come from the largest kingdom which is, “Animalia” or what we usually say, “Animals”. They also share the same phylum which is, “Chordata”. Same comes to class which is, “Reptilia” and order which is, “Crocodylia”. However, they begin to make a difference when we talk about their family, genus and species. The Crocodile’s family is named, “Crocodylidae” while in the other hands, the Alligator’s family is called, “Alligatoridae”. For the genus, the Crocodile’s genus is named, “Crocodylus” while the Alligator’s genus is named, “Alligator”. They also have different species, which is, “Crocodylus Porosus” for Crocodiles and, “Alligator Mississippiensis” for Alligators.

In conclusion, we can have hard times finding out the difference between Crocodiles and Alligators at first sight, but by the time we dive deep into the physical traits, behavioural traits and taxonomy, we can really see how different they actually are. While Crocodiles have “V” shaped mouths, Alligators have “U” shaped mouths. Crocodiles have light skin to blend into sand, grass etc. Alligators have dark skin which blends in perfectly with swamps and rivers. Crocodiles have vocal chords while Alligators don’t. They also have different families, genus and species. Now, it’s very easy to see how different Crocodiles and Alligators are.

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