Description
"This one-of-a-kind cultural history of the American alligator recounts the remarkable story of this giant-and many would say fearsome-reptile that can grow to almost fifteen feet long and weigh up to a thousand pounds. With a more temperate distribution than any of the twenty-four extant crocodilian species, the alligator makes its home in freshwater swamps, marshes, rivers, ponds, and lakes from Texas to North Carolina, although the largest concentrations of alligators are found in Florida and Louisiana. While this apex predator survives mainly on a diet of fish, birds, snakes, turtles, and small mammals, it will eat almost anything, including pets, livestock, and in rare cases, humans. Despite its reputation as a man-eater, the alligator has for the most part been welcomed in Florida, the state with more of the species' wetland habitat than any other. Today Florida is home to an estimated 1.3 million alligators, almost 22 million human residents, and more than 130,000 million annual visitors. Given these numbers, the risk seems high for a tragic encounter, and yet Floridians tolerate living with a massive alligator population. Along with white sand beaches, palm trees, and oranges, the alligator has become one of Florida's most recognizable icons and an important source of the state's identity. Although the alligator has also provoked great fear and anxiety, it has escaped the relentless eradication drive faced by other large predators, like the wolf, coyote, bear, and cougar. By exploring the complex ways that Euro-Americans, Native Americans, and African Americans have become entangled with the alligator, Gator! solves the mystery of why the American experience with this fearsome animal has been so different"-- Provided by publisher.
