What is the difference between Alligators and Crocodiles?

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There has been many a time when on a Safari that I have heard international tourists refer to crocodiles as alligators or ‘gators’.

This is an easy enough mistake to make as these reptiles do look quite similar and their behaviour is very similar. There are however some key differences and this brief summary explains how you can tell them apart.

Geographical differences between the Alligator and the Crocodile

ALLIGATOR

Americas
- US South East
- North Carolina
- Eastern Texas
- Florida
  - Everglades

CROCODILE

Africa
- South of the Sahara
Madagascar
India

Australia
Parts of South America

The ‘American’ crocodile is mainly limited to southern Florida and this is the only place on the planet that the crocodile and the alligator co-exist.

Reference Link to American Crocodile Wikipedia.

Physical differences between the Alligator and the Crocodile

ALLIGATOR

3 m in length
350 kg in weight

Round U-shaped snout
Upper jaw overlaps the lower jaw
Black or dark grey in colour with pale belly

CROCODILE

5 m in length
600 kg in weight

Narrow V-shaped snout
Upper jaw the same size as lower jaw
Brown or dark green with mottled green and yellow markings

In summary the crocodile, particularly the Nile (Africa) and Salt Water (Australia) crocodiles, look bigger and more powerful than the alligator.

This may of course be partly psychological as the crocodile has such a reputation as a man killer. There is no doubt however that the Nile and Salt Water crocodiles do grow considerably larger than alligators.