The American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) was listed as an endangered species in 1967 because of population declines attributable to market hunting, poaching, and the loss of wetland habitat. Subsequently, alligators have been delisted and their recovery is due to intense management and wetland conservation. Statewide management strategies for alligators are based upon data collected from harvested alligator populations. However, because population demographics of alligators are thought to to be affected by several environmental and life history characteristics, a generalized population model and management plan may not be appropriate for the species. Also, little is known about American alligators from Texas. Therefore, my objectives were to 1) identify trends in nuisance alligator reports in the state of Texas by year, month, county, alligator size, sex, situation, and action taken; 2) determine agency priority of nuisance alligator management based on these trends; 3) determine public opinion about alligators and their management; 4) quantify clutch size and hatchling production of wild American Alligator nests in southeastern Texas, and to determine if these parameters are affected by drought; 5) determine retention rates of three commonly used tags and one novel tag and determine the most cost- and time-effective tagging strategies; 6) determine demographic and localized differences alligator growth rates showed that growth differed among size classes. Mean annual growth rates for size classes 1(<50 cm total length; TL), 2 (50.1-100cm TL), and 3 (100.1-150 cm TL) were 30.6 ± 1.2 cm, 12.6 ± 1.5 cm, and 15.7 ± 3.3 cm, respectively. The mean body condition score without regard to size, sex, or density was 2.6 ± 0.05. Age estimates of alligators ≤151 cm (TL) ranged from 0.03 years to 13.64 years of age. Passive Integrated Transponders (PIT) and fish tag retention was 97% and 93%, respectively, in recaptured alligators. Fish tags were 7-18 times faster (i.e., person-minutes) to place on alligators than the other tags. In addition, fish tags were visible without recapture of the alligator, caused less stress on captured individuals, and the cost per tag for fish tags was not considered prohibitive. I recommend fish tags as the primary tagging strategy for alligators. Results of population surveys suggest that subadult and adult alligators are best surveyed at least three hours after dark, but hatchlings can be reliably surveyed anytime during the night. I found that alligator activity and abundance are highly variable among age classes and lakes and that survey techniques should be developed to be age and population specific. Managers and scientists should target particular age classes during surveys based on prevailing environmental conditions because precise monitoring of wildlife populations is crucial for species management and conservation. I recommend that management plans for Texas alligators be developed for each age class and on a per site basis because a ‘one-size fits all’ plan appears inappropriate for this species
