Featured Image Credit: Andrew Paice/Getty Images
By Kira Krall
American alligators are traditionally thought of as freshwater species and there’s a ton of research studies to prove it. However, some populations of the armored reptile can be found cruising marine waters. James Nifong of Kansas State University and his colleague Russell Lowers sought to fill the knowledge gap of what these coastal alligator populations are eating.
Nifong and Lowers discovered four species of cartilaginous fish in the gut of coastal alligators. They used a stomach pump/Heimlich maneuver hybrid to reveal nurse, lemon, and bonnethead sharks, and one species of stingray. This study is one of few to document these stomach contents since studies on these coastal population typically reveal a diet of crustaceans, fish, and shorebirds.
So why don’t more people see this kind of predation? Alligators and sharks cross paths more often than most people expect. These opportunistic hunters travel between marine and freshwater habitats in search of easier meals. Alligators can exceed 15 feet, but they’re more likely to dine on smaller sharks that could look like a bony fish to the untrained eye. The state reptile of Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida can hold its breath for up to two hours when it’s resting, so much of their activity takes place underwater and often in murky conditions.
Crocodilians all over the world have been documented dining on cartilaginous fish. The American alligators have a palette for fairly non-aggressive shark species, while Australia’s saltwater crocodiles seek riskier prey. This study found that over half of sampled freshwater sawfish (a shark relative) had crocodile teeth marks on their skin. Eyewitness accounts also report seeing crocodiles feasting on sharks in the waterways of Australia like the saltwater crocodile below feasting on a small bull shark.