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Animal Themes
Reptiles
Freshwater

Crocodiles and Alligators

Crocodiles and Alligators
Reading Level
     edHelper's suggested reading level:   grades 4 to 8
     Flesch-Kincaid grade level:   8.86

Vocabulary
     challenging words:    crocodilians, incubation, despite, incubate, strategy, abandon, death, swimmers, hatching, lower, crocodile, defend, attack, clumsy, launch, powerful

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Other Languages
     Spanish: Cocodrilos y Caimanes

Crocodiles and Alligators   
1     Crocodiles and alligators belong to the family of crocodilians. They are close relatives to dinosaurs, and they are the largest reptiles in the world. Crocodiles and alligators live in warm, moist places, such as the Amazon rain forest or the Everglades swamps of south Florida. They rely on their sharp teeth and powerful jaws to capture prey. They feed on a variety of animals ranging from insects and frogs to fish, turtles, and birds.
 
2     How can we tell the differences between crocodiles and alligators? Alligators have a wide, flat head with rounded snouts. The head of an alligator looks like the letter U. Crocodiles have more pointed snouts. The head of a crocodile looks like the handle of a baseball bat. Another easy way to tell crocodiles from alligators is to observe their teeth. When alligators close their mouth, their lower teeth cannot be seen. In crocodiles, their lower teeth can be seen even when they shut their mouth tightly.
 
3     Crocodiles and alligators are excellent swimmers despite how clumsy they look when they walk on land. Once in the water, crocodiles and alligators show only their eyes and nostrils above the surface so they can see and breathe while waiting patiently for any animal that comes near them. They can also swim quietly to get close enough to the prey and launch a surprise attack! Crocodiles and alligators grab their prey with their powerful jaws and pull it underwater to drown it to death.

Paragraphs 4 to 5:
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