Alligators in frozen lakes stick their snouts out of ice to survive (2024)
If you're gazing at a frozen pond, a protruding alligator snout is not the first thing you would expect to find. But as the weather turns colder across the northern gator states, you may well stumble across one of these peculiar protrusions.
The central U.S. has been hit by a wild winter storm, and freezing weather is expected to continue over the Christmas weekend. And while many animals migrate south to wait out the colder months, others have developed strategies to withstand the snow and ice.
"Alligators deal with cold weather mainly through brumation, which is sort of the reptile version of hibernation," Adam Rosenblatt, an ecologist and alligator expert at the University of North Florida, told Newsweek. "Basically, during brumation alligators enter a period of dormancy where their metabolism is very low and they don't move around a lot."
Physiologically, brumating is not the same as hibernating, but they are both life-saving adaptations that allow animals to survive through the cold.
While most cold-blooded animals will slow their metabolisms during the winter months, some have evolved to stop them almost completely. "The wood frog...survives the winter by allowing its body to partially freeze," Rosenblatt said. "It's evolved the ability to restart its metabolism from near zero after a freeze event."
Often, alligators will retreat into underground dens that they have dug into the banks of streams and rivers to wait out the cold. "Cold-blooded animals have a lot of different strategies for surviving the winter, but most involve finding somewhere—underground, inside a tree, under leaf litter, etcetera—that allows them to stay warm enough to survive," Rosenblatt said.
Sometimes, however, the alligators will stay in the icy water. "Alligators poke their snouts above the ice so they can continue to breathe even when a pond freezes over," he said. "They can sense when ice is forming, and they position themselves so the ice forms around their snout."
In 2021, wildlife photographer David Arbour shared photos on Facebook of the frozen gators at the Red Slough Wildlife Management Area in Oklahoma.
In 2018, the same behavior was seen by alligators at the Shallotte River Swamp Park in North Carolina.
In essence, they use their snouts as scaly snorkels so that they can breathe while their bodies remain in the insulated water below. "The behavior is common in alligator populations that live in areas that experience freezing conditions," Rosenblatt said.
If you see one of these snorkeling snouts, the best thing is to leave it alone. Like most of us, gators can be a bit snappy when they first wake up.
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The cold-blooded animals can't regulate their own temperature, so when temperatures drop they go into a state called brumation
brumation
brumation (uncountable) (biology) A lethargic state that some ectothermic animals, such as many reptiles, assume during cold conditions. Partly analogous to hibernation, but physiological differences include that brumation does not depend on stored fat, but rather on reduced metabolic activity.
to survive, Howard said. The alligators can protect themselves by sticking their noses up out of the water, so they can keep breathing while the water freezes around them, he said.
"The icing response is tied to a metabolic process called brumation, which is the reptilian or 'ecothermic' equivalent of hibernation, wherein alligators essentially slow their heart rate down to a few beats per minute and go into a state of torpor."
They are cold-blooded and depend on the natural world around them to provide warmth. To do this, they will bask in the sun or dig holes in mud to trap heat. Although American alligators can be hard to miss while basking on the shore, they can look eerily like logs when floating in the water.
"When alligators brumate, their metabolic rate slows down and they become lethargic," according to the South Carolina Aquarium. Once they enter this period, they don't eat but continue to drink to avoid dehydration. Brumation can last for about 4-5 months depending on how long the water temperatures remain cold.
Get DFW local news, weather forecasts and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC DFW newsletters. Gators push their noses above the ice so they can continue to breathe even when the water freezes.
Alligators are cold-blooded reptiles that cannot warm themselves up, meaning they will quickly die in cold conditions. They did not live in the northern regions of North America during the Ice Age, instead, remaining in the warmer waters of the far southern United States and the Caribbean.
Alligators can stay underwater for much longer than humans. A typical dive might last 10-20 minutes.In a pinch an alligator can stay submerged for up to two hours if it is at rest.And, in very cold water, an alligator can last up to eight hours submerged.
Some alligators will actually come to the surface at just the right time before the water freezes and stick the top of their snouts out, letting the water freeze around them. There they remain, essentially frozen, in a state of brumation(similar to hibernation, without the deep sleep cycle) until the ice thaws.
It's not every day that you see alligators frozen in ice, especially along the typically mild North Carolina coastline. However, these alligators aren't in trouble, they are in a state called brumation. Alligators are often found throughout the Southeast.
Alligators have a natural fear of humans, and usually begin a quick retreat when approached by people. If you have a close encounter with an alligator a few yards away, back away slowly. It is extremely rare for wild alligators to chase people, but they can run up to 35 miles per hour for short distances on land.
And they do have periods where they are active. "If the body of water were to freeze, alligators will surface the tips of their snouts above the ice in a procedure known as 'snorkeling,' with only their nostrils visible while the rest of the gator is under frozen water.
Alligators are cold-blooded reptiles that cannot warm themselves up, meaning they will quickly die in cold conditions. They did not live in the northern regions of North America during the Ice Age, instead, remaining in the warmer waters of the far southern United States and the Caribbean.
Though they do not eat, they continue to drink to avoid dehydration. When alligators brumate, their metabolic rate slows down and they become lethargic. On colder winter days, they create mud holes for warmth and shelter. On warmer days, alligators might emerge to bask in the sun.
Although the Great Lakes are home to many aquatic animals, alligators are rarely found in freshwaters this far north. Alligators are known for inhabiting warmer waters and Lake Michigan is just simply too cold.
Introduction: My name is The Hon. Margery Christiansen, I am a bright, adorable, precious, inexpensive, gorgeous, comfortable, happy person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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