This big fellow is the American Alligator. As its name implies, it is found here solely in the US, though mainly in the southern states like Florida & Louisiana. They're members of the same family as crocodilians and one of two alligator species (the other being the Chinese Alligator), but gators have a more broad snout than crocodiles, so it's easy to tell them apart. Throughout its range, it is the apex predator. That means it has no competition, except with other gators. Like crocodiles, alligators are ambush predators. They watch for a potential meal with only its eyes and nose poking out of the water. When it has a preferred target in sight, it submerges to sneak up on it, then it strikes out at its prey. Once the gator has a hold, it never lets go and its prey is dragged down in the water to be drowned. As with all crocs, alligators use a maneuver known as the death roll to tear off meat chunks of large prey then swallow it as its teeth aren't designed for chewing, but they're sharp enough to do serious damage. Smaller prey are simply swallowed whole after being drowned.

This gator at the Newport Aquarium is known as "Big Mike".