UGA researchers study impact of rising temperatures on gator eggs

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — The Florida Gators might be the Bulldogs’ rivals on the field, but off the field, researchers in Athens are trying to save real-life gators.A team of researchers studied 146 alligator eggs, incubating them under five temperature ranges between 86 and 93 degrees Fahrenheit. Alligators are a species with temperature-dependent sex determination, meaning the temperature at which an egg incubates determines the sex of the embryo. More extreme temperatures tend to result in females, while moderate temperatures result in males.Critically, the temperatures in these ranges fluctuated when most studies incubate at a constant temperature.The team found that, at higher temperatures, the results differed substantially from those of eggs incubated at constant temperatures. The estimates differed by up to 1.36 degrees Celsius, or around 2.49 degrees Fahrenheit.While previous studies expected hotter temperatures to start producing females at around 97 degrees Fahren