"Florida is the only place in the world where you can find both alligators AND crocodiles. But the American crocodile is the rarer of the two by far. In the early 1800s, crocodiles lived all through the wild mangrove estuaries of south Florida. They were big, they were secretive, and they were feared. Today, they're one of the great recovery stories — but for a long time, almost no one in Florida had ever seen one."
When Crocodiles Ruled the Mangroves
The American crocodile (Crocodylus acutus) is one of Florida's most remarkable and least-known reptiles. Florida is the only place in the world where both alligators and crocodiles coexist in the wild. The American crocodile is larger, more salt-tolerant, and much rarer than the American alligator. In the early 1800s, American crocodiles were found throughout the wild mangrove estuaries of south Florida — from the Ten Thousand Islands up through Florida Bay and into the southern end of Biscayne Bay. They lived in the remote, brackish, tangled mangrove shorelines where few people ventured. Crocodiles are shy and reclusive, unlike the more bold alligator; they avoid people whenever possible. Early explorers and naturalists described crocodiles in Florida's mangrove wilderness, but they were never as abundant as alligators. The crocodile's south Florida stronghold was the remote, trackless mangrove estuary — a wilderness that would soon come under pressure from development.