• News
  • Film and TV
  • Music
  • Tech
  • Features
  • Celebrity
  • Politics
  • Weird
  • Community
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • LADbible
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
TikTok
YouTube
Submit Your Content
People are only just discovering the 'terrifying' speed of an alligator on land

Home> News> Animals

Published 14:18 12 Oct 2023 GMT+1

People are only just discovering the 'terrifying' speed of an alligator on land

People have learnt that alligators run much faster on land than expected.

Niamh Shackleton

Niamh Shackleton

If you were already scared of alligators, then this will be probably freak you out even more.

There are only two remaining species of the 150 million-year-old reptile; the American alligator and the Chinese alligator.

Louisiana and Florida have the highest population of alligators in the states, while the Chinese alligator mainly resides in Yangtze river, primarily in the Anhui and Zhejiang provinces in eastern China.

As you probably know, the ginormous reptiles mainly live in water.

Advert

Despite this, they can still move pretty fast on land - much faster than you'd expect.

The average weight of an alligator is around 230kg for a male and 91kg for a female and, with their hefty stature in mind, you wouldn't think they would be able to move that fast.

Alligators can reach speeds of 30mph on land.
Gregory Sweeney/Getty Stock Image

But they can actually hit speeds of 30mph. Horrifying? I know.

Advert

This is only in short bursts though; but if you're within 10 feet of a gator and you've p*ssed it off, you could be in trouble.

A video has been shared online of how fast a gator and go when they have one of these 'bursts', and people have labelled it as both 'amazing' and 'terrifying'.

"It's amazing, and also terrifying how quickly these creatures can move," one person penned.

"When you realize you're not faster than alligator," quipped another.

Advert

"That’s terrifying," added a third, as someone else admitted that they flinched just watching the clip.

While alligators can move fast, it's not very often that they do.

In fact, their average on-land seen hovers more around 9.5 to 11mph.

Advert

AZ Animals explained: "Alligators will rarely exert themselves for more than 100 feet.

"They’re sedentary creatures that have adapted to have very quick and powerful movements when prey comes near them and are generally not active hunters that chase down prey."

It's rare that alligators attack humans, but 'aberrant behavior may occur', said Wilderness & Environmental Medicine.

"Serious and repeated attacks usually are made by alligators over 8 feet in length and are probably attributed to chase and feeding behavior," the medical journal added.

Advert

An example of this occurred in recent weeks after a 14-foot alligator was caught carrying a human body down a river in Florida.

The 14-foot alligator was spotted carrying a body.
Fox WTVT

Emergency crews were rushed to a park in Largo, around half an hour from Tampa, last month and arrived hoping to rescue the corpse and investigate how the person was killed.

The body was later confirmed to be that of a 41-year-old Sabrina Peckham and the authorities humanely killed the alligator.

Advert

As it stands, it remains unclear if the reptile was responsible for the woman's death.

Featured Image Credit: YouTube/TeamTiny Tech And Pets

Topics: Animals, News

Niamh Shackleton
Niamh Shackleton

Niamh Shackleton is an experienced journalist for UNILAD, specialising in topics including mental health and showbiz, as well as anything Henry Cavill and cat related. She has previously worked for OK! Magazine, Caters and Kennedy.

X

@niamhshackleton

Advert

Advert

Advert

Choose your content:

2 hours ago
3 hours ago
  • 2 hours ago

    TSA issues warning as it bans passengers from taking nine bizarre items on planes

    If you're vacationing soon, you might want to double check that you don't have any of these items in your luggage

    News
  • 2 hours ago

    Apple TV's 'excellent' new film was shot entirely on iPhone and is available to stream for free online

    British musician Stormzy stars in the new Apple TV short film

    Film & TV
  • 3 hours ago

    Pentagon shares details behind 'highly classified' strike on Iran and how stealth bombers traveled ‘without the world knowing’

    Operation Midnight Hammer included more than 125 aircraft, units from the Navy, and so-called 'bunker buster' bombs

    News
  • 3 hours ago

    People are divided after dentist reveals the proper way to brush your teeth

    Dr Victoria Sampson told Steven Bartlett all about oral hygiene on The Diary of a CEO podcast

    News
  • People are just discovering what a 'zorse' sounds like and it's blowing their minds
  • People are only just discovering the real reason why there are no skeletons in the Titanic wreckage
  • People are only just discovering the real reason why there's no skeletons in the Titanic wreckage
  • People are just discovering what the middle part on a pair of scissors is for