Are there alligators in Tennessee?
Last checked November 3, 2026 against official sources.
Yes.
TWRA: "Since 2018, confirmed sightings in Shelby, Fayette, and Hardin counties have been recorded by the TWRA", and an alligator was caught in Norris Lake in East Tennessee in March 2024. TWRA says alligators are expanding their range naturally from southern border states. USGS NAS separately lists two nonindigenous records (Marion 2009, Union 2024), both status "failed".
Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency: “There have been several confirmed sightings of alligators in Southwest Tennessee in recent years.” Source
Where the American alligator lives in the US
- Native or listed
- Nonnative or not established
- No official record in our data
- 1–9
- 10–99
- 100–999
- 1,000+
What else it could be
Photo: Dennis Vollmar · CC BY 4.0 · iNaturalist American crocodile
Crocodile: lighter grayish-green skin, narrow tapered triangular snout, fourth lower tooth visible with the mouth closed, and mostly coastal brackish or salt water in south Florida. Alligator: darker, broad rounded snout, mostly fresh water.
Photo: Charles J. Sharp · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons · resized Spectacled caiman
USGS: the common (spectacled) caiman's snout is not as broad and round as the American alligator's, and unlike the alligator it has a unique bony ridge in front of and between the eyes.
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What official sources advise
- Alligators: do not interact with, feed or harass; view from afar. Alligators are protected. Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency
- Keep alligators out of captivity and release: TWRA says possessing or releasing them is illegal and poses safety and ecological risks. Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency
- Alligators survive Tennessee winters in brumation. Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency
Other questions about Tennessee
Sources
- Alligators in Tennessee. Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. archived copy, captured October 22, 2026; checked November 3, 2026.
Quoted passages (4)
“There have been several confirmed sightings of alligators in Southwest Tennessee in recent years.”
“If you come across one while exploring the outdoors in West TN, don’t interact with, feed, or harass it, just view it from afar and leave it alone while enjoying Tennessee’s unique biodiversity. … Alligators are a testament to the biodiversity in Tennessee and are a protected species; any attempt to capture or kill them is a violation of the law.”
“…we would like to remind everyone that possessing or releasing alligators in Tennessee is illegal and poses safety and ecological risks.”
“Alligators can survive Tennessee winters by going into a hibernation-like dormancy called brumation”