13,000 alligators wake up for spring in China

Photos: courtesy www.news.cn

Around 13,000 alligators ended hibernation and were moved out of hothouses in China’s  Anhui Province.

"Chinese alligators hibernate in the winter. We usually move them out of houses in March when the temperature is above 16 Celsius degrees," said workers at Anhui Yangtze Alligator Reserve in Xuancheng City as reported by Chinese media.

According to the reserve, all the alligators are analysed and only the ones who are termed healthy can go outside.

The alligators are still in semi-dormancy period and are not able to feed right after they are moved out, said one of the reserve workers. "They will not start to eat until April when the temperature rises above 25 degress Celsius. We will feed them some mussels and snails to practice their hunting skills."

Anhui Yangtze Alligator Reserve is the only artificial breeding base for Chinese alligators across the globe.

While wild alligators hibernate in a cave during winter, the alligators in the reserve spend their time indoors.

To increase the number of wild alligators, the reserve has been releasing batches of reptiles in their natural habitat since 2003.

Chinese alligator became a first-class protected animal in China in the year 1972.