Crocodile Vs American Alligator Essay

Your family and you finally got to take that vacation you all had been wanting. Everyone piled up into the old trusty commute vehicle, luggage in tow, and headed to the one and the only Disney World. Coming to a singular destination choice was easy, kids notoriously loved Disney World, and adults loved the tropical weather of southern Florida. Plenty of preparation had been made, money put aside, and precautions taken. Taking a dip in the famous Florida waters was of high priority on the trip itinerary. However, no one had considered the possibility of a different kind of “dangerous predator” while swimming in the refreshing coastal waters.
When individuals think of the threats of Floridian water, flashes of Jaws movie clips go through their minds, but a more abundant population of semiaquatic reptilians poses a greater threat. The United States hosts one native species of both alligator and crocodile, respectively named the American alligator and the American crocodile. American alligators are present in all sixty-seven counties in Florida as well as nine other states, whereas American crocodiles are primarily found only in southern Florida. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation …show more content…
In biology, the scientific process of classifying organisms is taxonomy. Taxonomy relies on common characteristics between groups to classify them into an area in the taxonomic hierarchy. Both alligators and crocodiles share the same order, a taxonomic rank that groups together families sharing a similar nature or character, of crocodilia which includes mostly large, predatory, semiaquatic reptiles. The crocodilia order also includes caimans, gharials, and false gharials. This means that alligators, crocodiles, caimans, gharials, and false gharials are all predatory, semiaquatic reptiles that share essentially the same body morphology (structure and