Alligators are one of the top health indicators of the Florida Everglades. “Alligators are top predators,” said Michiko Squires, a wildlife biologist who goes by the nickname Momo. “So if they’re doing well, if their body condition is good, then we know that everything else in the food chain below them is doing well.”

Which is why it’s so worrisome that the gators are shrinking.

Climate change and draining the glades to make way for urban development are forcing fresh water out of the Everglades, which impacts the overall health of these reptiles.