🐊 Can you spot the Chinese alligators? The Chinese alligator and American alligator are cousins. Both alligator species are nocturnal during the summer. Summer is also when they begin their mating rituals. During the colder, dry months – from October to March – Chinese alligators will live in caves or burrows. There, they will brumate rather than truly hibernate, which is a way that reptiles respond to cold weather. When April comes around, they emerge and spend much of the day basking in sunny

More than 13,200 Chinese alligators are prepared to be transferred for dormancy in the Yangtze Alligator Reserve in Xuancheng City of east China. Every alligator will first have a physical examination by being washed to help breeders find out if it has scars or flecks on its skin. The Anhui Yangtze Alligator Reserve is the only artificial breeding base for Chinese alligators worldwide. | CGTN