# Chinese alligator (*Alligator sinensis*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/chinese-alligator  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The chinese alligator (Alligator sinensis) is a crocodilian reptile in the family Alligatoridae, named by Fauvel, 1879. It is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, a threatened category, and checklists record it in China. Adults weigh 12.7 kg, with reported values from 10.75 to 14.6 kg, placing it in the medium size class. It produces one clutch of 20 eggs per year, the eggs incubate for 70 days, sexual maturity comes at 6.7 years, and lifespan reaches up to 70 years.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 10.8 kg – 14.6 kg |
| Length | up to 2.46 m |
| Lifespan | 60.7 years |
| Diet | Carnivore |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 70 years |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | freshwater |
| Egg incubation | 70 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 20.3 |
| Age at maturity | 6 years – 7.5 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Reproduction | Eggs |
| Active | By day (diurnal) |
| Conservation status | Critically Endangered (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | 1 country |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Reptilia
- order: Crocodylia
- family: Alligatoridae
- genus: Alligator
- species: *Alligator sinensis* Fauvel, 1879

Synonyms: *Caigator sinensis*

## Countries on record

Countries where Catalogue of Life checklists list the species. Many checklists carry no country data, so the list is often incomplete. It is not a range map.

China

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the chinese alligator?

The chinese alligator is a crocodilian, a reptile in the order Crocodylia and the family Alligatoridae.

### How heavy is a chinese alligator?

Adults weigh 12.7 kg, with reported values from 10.75 to 14.6 kg.

### Is the chinese alligator endangered?

Yes. It is listed as Critically Endangered (CR) on the IUCN Red List, which is a threatened category.

### Which countries is the chinese alligator recorded in?

Checklists record the chinese alligator in China.

### How long does a chinese alligator live?

Its lifespan is 60.7 years, with values up to 70 years reported.

### How many eggs does a chinese alligator lay?

It lays 20 eggs per clutch, one clutch per year, and the eggs incubate for 70 days.

### When does a chinese alligator reach sexual maturity?

It reaches sexual maturity at 6.7 years, with reported values from 6.0 to 7.5 years.

### Who named the chinese alligator and what are its other names?

It was named Alligator sinensis by Fauvel, 1879. Other English names include T'o, Yow lung, Muddy dragon, China alligator and Yangtze alligator.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [ReptTraits: a comprehensive dataset of ecological traits in reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.24572683.v4), CC BY 4.0, v1-2. Oskyrko, O., Mi, C., Meiri, S. et al. (2024) ReptTraits: a comprehensive dataset of ecological traits in reptiles. Scientific Data 11: 243. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-024-03079-5. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.24572683.v4
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Chinese alligator (Alligator sinensis). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/chinese-alligator