Body size measurements and stomach contents of Alligator mississippiensis on Jekyll Island, Georgia

We conducted the study on Jekyll Island (31° 3’58” N, 81° 24’52” W), a barrier island on the southeast coast of Georgia, USA between March and August during 2019 and 2020. We located alligators on golf courses at night using handheld spotlights and captured them using a fishing pole and line with a modified treble hook attached. We then brought each animal to shore and taped its mouth closed before measuring total length (TL) and snout-vent length (SVL) dorsally to the nearest 0.1 cm. We determined sex via cloacal examination and then used the hose-Heimlich technique to collect stomach contents. This technique involves filling each alligator’s stomach with water and then applying pressure to the alligator’s flanks until the water, and any prey items inside, exit the mouth. We collected all water and prey items in a bucket and, following release of each alligator at the capture site, we sieved the prey items and stored them in jars filled with 95% ethanol. In the laboratory we identified all prey items to the lowest possible taxonomic level and weighed each item to the nearest 0.1 g (wet weight).