Video shows frozen alligators in spectacular brumation process

Frozen alligators? Sounds like a sight as terrifying as it is tragic, but actually, it’s neither! Well, unless you have a fear of gators. In fact, alligators have adapted an evolutionary tactic called brumation, which allows them to survive in extremely low temperatures. It’s happening now with some alligators in Swamp Park, an alligator sanctuary in North Carolina, where temperatures have reached as low as 17 degrees this week.

In a video shared by the sanctuary on social media, park manager George Howard explains the process and how these spectacular creatures survive in that kind of environment. He explains that they stick their nose out of the frozen water and close their eyes to protect themselves just before the water freezes, knowing instinctively when it will happen. They can remain like this for several days at a time, and Swamp Park was one of the first to ever document the rare occurrence back in 2018.

Brumation is a similar process to hibernation, in that it’s a long period of dormancy during the cold seasons, but one key difference is that in hibernation, the animal is in a deep sleep and does not eat or drink, but when an alligator is in brumation, it will still be awake, and it will still drink water. Both processes can last for around four to five months.

The park responded to questions in their Facebook comments, reassuring that though the gators responses are much slower, they are in fact fully aware of what’s going on around them. So we wouldn’t recommend giving their nose a boop, but one brave park staffer actually did!