University Park, Pa. -- Owners of alligator farms and ranches may soon have a new tool to aid in making critical economic decisions and to optimize alligator farm profitability and sustainability, according to Penn State economists.
"Little formal work has been done on the economics of the alligator industry," says Jerry Heykoop, graduate student in agricultural economics. "We would like to show that sound economic management can benefit both alligator farmers and the wild populations."
While American alligators were once on the endangered species list, they are again abundant in the coastal southeastern United States. However, because Black caiman and American crocodile hide look like alligator hide, American alligators are listed as threatened and all alligator products must bear a tag indicating that they are really alligator.
The watch bands, shoes, boots, suitcases and wallets made from alligator for sale in upscale stores across the country could have come from farmed alligators or wild alligators in Louisiana or Florida.
In 1996 the Louisiana alligator industry was a $12 million farming enterprise and an $8.7 million dollar hunting effort. In 1995 in Florida, $3.9 million came from farming and $5.3 million came from hunting.
Heykoop and Dr. Darren Frechette, assistant professor of agricultural economics, presented their dynamic economic model of the alligator industry today (June 26) to attendees at the 1999 joint annual meeting of the American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists, American Elasmobranch Society, Herpetologist's League and the Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles held at the University Park campus.
Unlike other agricultural areas, no difference exists between wild and farmed populations and farmers often take egg clutches from the wild to compensate for the poor breeding behavior of captive alligators. In Louisiana, a portion of the alligators that hatch from the wild clutch must be returned to the wild.
"Our model considers both the wild population and the farm and ranch population and includes a price prediction method," says Heykoop.
The model will answer three questions always facing alligator farmers. How many eggs should be collected from the wild? At what size and age should the alligators be harvested? And for the Louisiana farmers, how many and at what size should alligators be returned to the wild?
The economic considerations for the farmer include the cost of raising the animals, the prices for alligator meat and hides. The market for meat fluctuates as does the cost of hides. Different sized hides also bring varying prices.
While some alligators do breed in captivity, wild mothers are more fertile. Harvesting alligator eggs in Louisiana, also helps the wild population. The survival rate of wild hatchlings is very low due to cannibalism and predation, while farm-raised hatchlings are protected from predators and cannibalism is not a problem because alligators are kept with others of their own size.
In Louisiana, farmers must decide if it is better to return 30 percent of the hatchlings to the wild at three feet, or only 10 percent when they reach five feet. About 17 percent of wild hatchlings make it to four feet.
Farmers must decide if the cost of raising the animals for another 2 feet balances the additional percent of more hide and meat the farmers can sell.
Both Florida and Louisiana farmers must decide how big their alligators should be when harvested and this influences the preferred sex of the alligators. If farmers harvest the alligators at 4 feet, then either sex is acceptable, but if the alligators are to grow larger, than farners might prefer male alligators because they grow faster and bigger.
"Chromosomes do not determine the sex of alligator hatchlings, egg temperature during incubation does," says Heykoop. "Although not a common practice now, farmers could choose to hatch out only male alligators."
EDITORS: Mr. Heykoop is at 814-863-0019 or heykoop@psu.edu by email.