Chinese Alligator (also called the Yangtze Alligator)
The Chinese alligator
is one of two species of alligator. 
(The other is the American alligator seen in this
picture)
Chinese alligators live in a just a small part of north-eastern
China. It is thought that there are just 150 Chinese alligators
left in the wild. It is a very endangered animal and it is protected
by both Chinese and international law. The habitat where it lives
is also protected.
Why has it become
endangered?
Because it
lives where people live and eats the ducks that people keep for
food as well as destroying irrigation channels on farmland. The
farmers would like them to be gone! The building of dams in the
wetlands is also destroying the habitat.
What is being
done?
There are
several thousand alligators being kept in captivity and it may
be possible to reintroduce them into the wild at some stage. However,
villagers and farmers will have to be taught how to value the
alligator or they will not survive.
Appearance:
What do they look like?
The alligators grow to about 2 metres and can weigh up to 40 kilograms.
The body is covered with scales. The end of the snout is tapered
and slightly upturned. They can have up to 76 teeth.
Habitat: Where
do they live?
The alligators live in freshwater rivers and streams, lakes, ponds
and swamps. They build burrows and hibernate in them for up to
7 months of the year for protection from the extreme climate of
northern China.
Diet: What
do they eat?
The alligators hunt mainly at night feeding on snails, mussels
and fish. They also eat small mammals such as rats.
Reproduction:
How do they breed?
baby Chinese alligator at a breeding farm
After mating in
the summer, the female builds a mounded nest of rotting plants
and lays between 10 and 50 eggs.
After about 70 days
the eggs hatch.
Acknowledge this
source in your bibliography like this:
China
(2001).
[Online], Available: www.kidcyber.com.au
Back to Flora and Fauna of
China
updated December 2006