Alligators
The Creole Nature Trail All American Road passes through the equivalent of alligator “heaven” — vast freshwater marshes. There are many places to see alligators as you learn to spot them lying in the sun by the water or mostly submerged with only their eyes above water level.
There’s a good chance of sighting them along the Sabine NWR Wetland Walkway, the Cameron-Prairie NWR Pintail Wildlife Drive or from the observation deck around the Cameron-Prairie NWR Visitor Center.
Never underestimate the speed of an alligator when it’s apparently “resting.” Though short, its legs are very strong. In combination with its clawed feet and muscular tail, the alligator can move an amazing 30 mph for short spurts. By comparison, the fastest human sprinter achieves only 20 mph.
Rockefeller Refuge & Alligators
The Rockefeller Refuge is probably home to the most abundant alligator populations along the Creole Nature Trail. Most information we’ve learned about the American Alligator, comes from years of research performed at this refuge.
For your own safety:
- Do not feed, tease, prod or otherwise provoke it.
- Keep your distance.
- Treat them with respect.
- Keep your pet on a leash.
Ferocious Facts
- The American Alligator has the most powerful known bite in the animal kingdom. A 12-foot alligator snaps with a brute force of 2,115 pounds! By comparison a large dusky shark bites with a force of 300 lbs, a lion with the force of 940 lbs. and a hyena with the force of 1000 lbs. Humans? They bite with a measly 170 lbs.
- About half its body length, the alligator’s tail is so strong it can propel it up to five feet out of the water to snatch unsuspecting prey.
- The American Alligator has remained unchanged for approximately 65 million years. Its extinct relatives date back to the Triassic Period — 230-million years ago.
- The alligator’s jaw is studded with 70 to 80 cone-shaped teeth capable of replacing themselves when one falls out.
