Crocodilians are a cold-blooded species, and require an average temperature of approximately 80 degrees Fahrenheit to survive. This being the case, they are found on warmer continents that have swampy or humid conditions for at least part of the season. The American alligator lives almost exclusively in the lower southeast regions of North America, from the Carolinas to Texas. The caiman, a smaller species of crocodiles, populate a large section of southern Mexico, Central and South America. The Chinese alligator lives in the lower Yangtze valley in China. The American crocodile is scattered throughout the Everglades and Florida Keys, and in Mexico and Central America. The African Nile crocodile is one of the most notorious, often growing as large as 16 to 20 feet in length. Southeast Asia has the Indo-Pacific crocodile, which lives in Indonesia, to the Philippines, and Australia.
Crocodilians are pure carnivores and ambush their prey by stealth. They swim either under water or skim q