Twelve Nile Crocodiles Hatch at Gatorland
July 6th, 2007Orlando, FL – Gatorland is pleased to announce the birth of twelve Nile Crocodiles that hatched yesterday as the theme park celebrated Independence Day.
The births come as no surprise as the grunts mother, known to park staff as “Mom” and her partner “Sultan”, the largest Nile crocodile at Gatorland, have a long standing breeding relationship that has resulted in numerous offspring over the years.
Female Nile Crocodiles typically dig a hole and bury their eggs in the sand. An Egg Collecting Team at Gatorland then removes the eggs for incubation in a safe environment where staff members can track and record data on each stage of the roughly three month development period.
Each of the young crocodiles measures approximately 10 centimeters in length and weighs about 2 oz. “Nile crocodiles are an amazing species,” states Babs Morrissiey, the park’s General Curator. “Nile Crocodiles typically mate once a year and at Gatorland we are happy to have one of the few breeding colonies within the United States.”
For more information on this and other additions taking place at Gatorland, log on to www.gatorland.com. The web site features a live Gator Cam located in the Alligator Breeding Marsh where you can see hundreds of alligators in their natural environment while reviewing the latest information available on many of the theme park’s residents.
