Hi, Mr. Nature here.
Did you know there is a Chinese alligator? It’s in the same genus as our American alligator, closely related to it, but a lot smaller, not dangerous to human beings, and is almost extinct in the wild: less than 150 of them left, by most estimates. Their habitat keeps getting destroyed, and poachers shoot them for sale as a luxury meat.
The good news is that there are thousands of Chinese alligators in zoos throughout the world, captive breeding of this species has been very successful, and it could be reintroduced to the wild–if only their habitat could be preserved.
Our alligators were almost out for the count, back in the mid-20th century, but protection, conservation, and the alligator’s own adaptability brought them out of danger. Now they stroll around on golf courses.
One wonders how two such closely related species wound up so widely separated on the globe. Eastern China is a long way from Florida.
Gee, I remember all those stuffed alligators people used to bring back from Florida, when I was a kid. You don’t see those anymore. And that’s a good thing.
What a beautiful creature! I could see having one of those as a pet. it even seems docile and friendly. I guess God didn’t leave out anything, when He made all of this.
That little one sure seemed to enjoy being scratched on the back of the head.
Who says dinosaurs went extinct. Alligators are dinosaurs. I like the Chinese version because they are not a danger to humans. Some think the sections in Job are about a ferocious crocodile.
The gator in the video seemed to enjoy human attention. It looked like it might be good company.