Georgia Aquarium gallery grows for gators

ATLANTA - It’s not that hard to spot an alligator in South Georgia these days — but it wasn’t always that way.  And a new exhibit at Atlanta’s Georgia Aquarium tells the story of the fascinating reptiles, which have truly earned the label “survivor.”

This weekend, Georgia Aquarium will officially open its new alligator exhibit, located directly above the Southern Company River Scout gallery.  “Alligators have a really great story to tell.  They were one of the most endangered species back in the 1960s…wiped out almost completely by over-harvest and loss of habitat,” says Chris Coco, Senior Director of Fish and Invertebrates.  "They’re a really great success story through the Endangered Species Act…they’re everywhere now in the Southeast.”

The exhibit will also feature extremely rare albino alligators, which come to the Aquarium from the St. Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park.

“Albinism is a condition where there’s a lack of melanin in the skin, so melanin provides is with the color and the pigment of our skin,” Cobb says, explaining why the albino alligators have pale skin and pink eyes.  “Albinos are very rare, and there’s a reason for that…in the wild, it’s not easy for them to survive.”

The alligator exhibit officially opens on Saturday; weekend hours at Georgia Aquarium are generally 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.  For more information on hours and admission, click here.