What’s the Difference Between Alligators and Crocodiles?

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They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link font-12 "> The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</span></div></div> </div> <article class="topic-content content mt-20"><figure class="md-assembly md-feature-assembly print-false" data-type="1" data-descid="1"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media" data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/77/146577-050-66D17CF5/Close-up-crocodile-eye-location.jpg" target="_blank" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center " data-href="*"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/77/146577-050-66D17CF5/Close-up-crocodile-eye-location.jpg?w=600&q=60" alt="Close-up of crocodile eye; location unknown (rainforest, reptile)." data-width="1600" data-height="1064" loading="eager"><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class=""><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div><cite class="credit d-block mt-5">Hemera/Thinkstock</cite></figcaption></figure><p class="topic-paragraph">Don’t know a <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/alligator" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">gator</a> from a <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/crocodile-order" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">crocodile</a>? You’re probably not alone. Although these large <a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/reptile" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">reptiles</a> belong to different families, they share a number of similarities, including long snouts, powerful tails, short legs, and bony-plated backs. But there are some easy ways to tell them apart. <strong>The first is the shape of the snout.</strong> In alligators it’s broad and U-shaped, while in crocodiles it’s narrow and V-shaped. <strong>Next are the teeth.</strong> In the case of alligators, the lower teeth are typically not visible when the mouth is shut. In crocodiles, however, some teeth in the bottom jaw appear, most notably the large fourth tooth. <strong>Another difference is color.</strong> Gray or black? It’s probably a gator. Olive or tan? A crocodile. <strong>The two reptiles also differ in location. </strong><a href="https://www.britannica.com/animal/estuarine-crocodile" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Crocodiles</a> are usually found in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/seawater" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">saltwater</a> habitats, while alligators prefer <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/conservation-ecology/Fire-suppression-as-habitat-loss#ref959650" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">freshwater</a> areas. <strong>And last—but definitely not least—is behavior.</strong> Crocodiles are typically more aggressive than gators. </p><span class="MOD1"></span><span class="AM-END-OF-ARTICLE am-inline"></span></article> </div> </div> </div> <aside class="cm-rightrail d-none d-md-block ad-rail"></aside> </div> </div> </div> </div> </main> <div class="grid gx-0"> <div class="col"> <div class="md-loading hidden display-4 font-weight-normal"></div> <div class="text-center my-20 mb-100"> <button class="md-infinite-load-next btn btn-blue" data-value="next-page">Load More</button> </div> </div> <div class="col-md-da-320 hidden-xs"> </div> </div> </div> </div> </main> <div id="md-footer"></div> <noscript><iframe src="//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-5W6NC8" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript> <script type="text/javascript" id="_informizely_script_tag"> var IzWidget = IzWidget || {}; (function (d) { var scriptElement = d.createElement('script'); scriptElement.type = 'text/javascript'; scriptElement.async = true; scriptElement.src = "https://insitez.blob.core.windows.net/site/f780f33e-a610-4ac2-af81-3eb184037547.js"; var node = d.getElementById('_informizely_script_tag'); node.parentNode.insertBefore(scriptElement, node); } )(document); </script>  <script> window.ap3c = window.ap3c || {}; var ap3c = window.ap3c; ap3c.cmd = ap3c.cmd || []; ap3c.cmd.push(function() { ap3c.init('ZO4siT4cLwnykPnzZWJtd3Byb2Q', 'https://engage.email.britannica.com/'); ap3c.track({v: 0}); }); ap3c.activity = function(act) { ap3c.act = (ap3c.act || []); ap3c.act.push(act); }; var s, t; s = document.createElement('script'); s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = "https://engage.email.britannica.com/app.js"; t = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; t.parentNode.insertBefore(s, t); </script> <script class="marketing-page-info" type="application/json"> {"pageType":"Story","templateName":"DEMYSTIFIED","pageNumber":1,"pagesTotal":11,"pageId":5499,"pageLength":null,"initialLoad":true,"lastPageOfScroll":false} </script> <script class="marketing-content-info" type="application/json"> [] </script> <script src="https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-133/js/libs/jquery-3.5.0.min.js?v=3.133.9"></script> <script type="text/javascript" data-type="Init Mendel Code Splitting"> (function() { $.ajax({ dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: 'https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-133/dist/story-page.js?v=3.133.9' }); })(); </script> <script class="analytics-metadata" type="application/json"> {"leg":"B","adLeg":"B","userType":"ANONYMOUS","pageType":"Story","pageSubtype":"DEMYSTIFIED","articleTemplateType":null,"gisted":false,"pageNumber":1,"hasSummarizeButton":false,"hasAskButton":false} </script> <script type="text/javascript"> EBStat={accountId:-1,hostnameOverride:'webstats.eb.com',domain:'www.britannica.com', json:''}; </script> <script type="text/javascript"> ( function() { $.ajax( { dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: '//www.britannica.com/webstats/mendelstats.js?v=1' } ) .done( function() { try {writeStat(null,EBStat);} catch(err){} } ); })(); </script> <div id="bc-fixed-dialogue"></div> </body> </html>

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What’s the Difference Between Alligators and Crocodiles? | Britannica