Alligators occupy gator holes during winter.
Alligators make gator holes which help smaller animals survive through the dry, winter months when there is less water available.
To make these gator holes, alligators clear plants and soil from large holes in the ground just below the water by digging with their wide noses and strong tails. Then, they live in these holes when winter comes.
When the Everglase become drier in winter, gator holes turn into small ponds. They are deeper than the land sround them and hold water like a bathtub. Other animals, scuh as frogs and fish, live in the gator holes. Deer, birds, panthers, river otters, and mink come to the holes to drink and eat when the alligators are not home. In this way, the alligators help a lot of other animals live through the dry season.
Find facts about gators at National Geographic.