Do alligators or crocodiles live in the ocean?

“Brackish” means the water has more salt than freshwater sources usually contain, but less salt than the ocean.

But alligators do not have salt glands as crocodiles do.

Consequently, they usually only stay for a few hours or days if they accidentally swim out of an estuary into the sea.

In recent years, however, more alligators spend extended periods sunning themselves on oceanside beaches, baffling wildlife experts.

Are alligators adapting to seawater, or are there just more alligators, leading to more sightings of confused or misdirected beasts along ocean coastlines?

Contents

Seaside Alligator Sightings 

Biloxi, Mississippi

On May 6, 2022, on the beach opposite the Biloxi Lighthouse Pier, a seven-foot-long alligator took a swim in the surf.

A fisherman caught and released the creature when told he would face a stiff federal fine if he did not cut it loose immediately.

On May 8, the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources confirmed that a trapper was assigned to catch the alligator but had not yet caught it.  

Palm Beach, Florida 

While diving Breaker’s Reef in 2010 in Palm Beach, Florida, near Turtle Mound, diver/photographer Lazaro Ruda spotted what he first thought was a saltwater crocodile lying on an underwater ledge.

He photographed the animal from 30 feet away, then decided to get closer.

Fellow diver John Karuza got into the shot about 20 feet away, and Lazaro continued approaching the “crocodile.”

After a few more photos, Lazaro realized he could not see the fourth tooth, and the creature’s snout was too blunt and U-shaped to be a crocodile.

Instead, Ruda had approached an alligator and was only a foot or two away when the gator opened its eyes.

Ruda turned his video camera on at that point, and the alligator turned away and swam to the surface, fortunately for Ruda and his two fellow divers.

The alligator was resting in 60 feet of saltwater, at least 10 miles from the nearest estuary inlet, demonstrating that despite their lack of a salt gland, alligators could swim, rest, and hunt in the ocean whenever they wished.

Chongming Island, China: Chinese Alligator(Alligator sinensis) 

On November 18, 2021, Shanghai birder and university students Hanxiao Cai, Steven Bonta, and five more students visited an alligator reintroduction project at Chongming Dongtan Wetland Park.

The critically-endangered Alligator sinensis, or Chinese alligator, has been successfully reintroduced to the wild from captivity, but only in tiny numbers.

On that date, from the original six alligators from the project, they spotted two adults and one juvenile and later confirmed that the female had twelve eggs.

Chongming Island lies at the mouth of the Yangzte River, so the alligators there very likely could venture into the ocean in search of the mollusks they prefer to eat.

Experts believe that approximately 500 Chinese alligators have been able to form stable populations that have successfully reproduced in the wild.

The project continues and hopefully will have the same success as the reintroduction of the American alligator, Alligator mississippiensis, from Texas to Mississippi in the United States.

So, Are There Alligators in the Ocean?

Although neither species spend long periods in ocean water, the American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) and the Chinese alligator (Alligator sinensis) will venture into the ocean searching for prey.

From examinations of stomach contents, ecologist and alligator researcher James Nihong has confirmed that alligators will eat nurse sharks, lemon sharks, bonnethead sharks, skates, and stingrays.

Alligators in the US take advantage of drops in ocean salinity, gliding on freshwater releases that result from flooding or heavy rains or deliberate releases of freshwater from levee projects. 

Consequently, if you see something floating in the water and think it might be an alligator, you are probably right.

Walk or swim to the shore in a straight line away from the alligator.

Do not splash; the alligator will assume you are prey in distress.

DO NOT APPROACH the alligator to take selfies, make videos, or confirm that it is an alligator.

Even if it is a saltwater crocodile, the reptile is dangerous.

Report it as soon as possible.

In other words, when in doubt, GET OUT.

Better your friends and family laugh at you than you become a statistic to protect your self-image.

Alligator Species in the Ocean

Only two alligator species exist in the world: the American alligator(Alligator mississippiensis) and the Chinese alligator(Alligator sinensis).

Both will venture into ocean water, searching for prey or resting on underwater ledges.

Both usually live in freshwater or brackish water sources.

Seeing an alligator in the water means that it contains very few pollutants.

The regular presence of alligators also means that other species, such as threatened shore birds and turtles, have a greater chance of successful breeding.

Is it Safe to Swim at Oceanside Beaches?

At least ten people drown daily in the United States, and about 3400 people drown yearly.

Drowning kills more children, ages one to four, than any other cause.

For people up to age 44, unintentional injuries, such as dog bites or lightning strikes, cause the most deaths.

However, as far back as 1970, none of the fatal alligator attacks reported in Florida occurred in a saltwater location.

Mississippi had no reported attacks in that period, and Texas’ only attack in 179 years happened on an inland waterway.

Likewise, a Louisiana man attacked by an alligator in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida was also in brackish water.

Nevertheless, with confirmed sightings of alligators in Biloxi and Florida ocean water locations, you should exercise the same caution on beaches that you would anywhere else you choose to swim.

Swim in daylight hours only, never at dawn or dusk.

Always have a swim buddy and a fully-charged phone to call emergency services. NEVER MIX ALLIGATORS AND ALCOHOL.

Alcoholic beverages, no matter how few you drink, how low their alcohol content, or how well you think you can handle drinking, will ALWAYS IMPAIR your judgment, reaction time, and situational awareness.

Although the statistics regarding alligators do not mean the ocean has no threats, alligators do not make it onto the list of real possibilities. 

You have a greater risk of developing an infection from Vibrio vulnificus, getting stung by a Portuguese man of war, or being attacked by a shark.

Keep children in sight, keep pets leashed and at your side, and only swim with lifeguards inside clearly marked swimming areas.

NEVER taunt, harass, or feed any alligators and NEVER jump into the water with them.

Interesting Ocean Water Alligator Facts

Confirmed alligator sightings 60 feet deep in the ocean in West Palm Beach, Florida, and repeated sightings of multiple alligators between 2018 and 2022 on Biloxi Beach and Deer Island, Mississippi, prove that alligators spend more extended periods in saltwater far more often than we want to believe.

Studies of alligators forced to dive and remain underwater demonstrate that they can survive up to eight hours in cold water before needing to surface.

Since alligators have jumped straight out of the water past their entire body length before, we should never forget how easy it would be for an alligator to attack from an underwater ledge, even in saltwater settings.

Alligators vs. Crocodiles vs. Caimans

If you see a large reptile swimming in the ocean, you’ve probably encountered a crocodile.

If so, you will see a narrow, v-shaped snout with its fourth teeth outside its mouth.

The alligator, in contrast, will have a significantly broader, U-shaped snout and no visible teeth.

In addition, saltwater crocodiles grow as long as 23 feet, while alligators usually reach 11 to 19 feet.

So, in contrast to both creatures, Caimans have a shorter, v-shaped snout than crocodiles and grow between 5 and 11 feet long.

Safety Tips for Swiming in Alligator-Infested Ocean Waters 

1. Wherever you see one, you will find more. Swim somewhere else.
2. When in doubt, GET OUT! Don’t swim there if you think a floating log offshore might be an alligator.
3. NEVER swim at dawn or dusk. Swim during daylight only.
4. Keep pets leashed and at your side, never on a retractable leash. Not only could the alligator get your pet, you or someone else could get tangled in the leash and dragged into the water.
5. NEVER swim outside designated swimming areas, and stay near the lifeguard if you think there’s even a remote possibility of an alligator on the beach.
6. NEVER DRINK AND DIVE! 
7. NEVER TAUNT AN ALLIGATOR.
8. NEVER FEED ALLIGATORS.
9. Call your local wildlife officer if you spotted an alligator anywhere you wouldn’t normally expect to see one.

Summary 

Although alligators typically live in freshwater or brackish water locations, confirmed sightings prove they can and do enter the ocean to hunt and rest.

However, alligators cannot process salt water because they do not have a functional salt gland.

Consequently, they do not remain in salt water for more than a few hours to a few days.

However, they use stormwater runoff from freshwater sources to glide on and through ocean water to reach their favorite saltwater prey sources: sharks, skates, and rays.

Occasionally, the Chinese alligator, Alligator sinensis, ventures into the ocean water at the mouth of the Yangtze River to hunt tortoises and eat shellfish.

However, due to their critically-endangered status and insufficient numbers, it is improbable that you will ever encounter one in the wild.