Alligators can live 35 to 50 years in the wild. In captivity, 60 to 80 years.

Once hunted for their hides, alligators today are threatened mainly by habitat loss and encounters with people.

Once on the brink of extinction, well over a million alligators can be found today in Florida, Louisiana, Texas, and Georgia.

The American alligator can be found in Biscayne National Park, FL; Everglades National Park, FL; Big Cypress National Preserve, FL; Canaveral National Seashore, FL; Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve, FL; and Cumberland Island National Seashore, GA.