A baby alligator takes a dip in a canal near the gate on NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

A baby alligator takes a dip in a canal near the north gate on NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A typical, adult American alligator will reach a weight of 790 pounds and 13 feet in length.

The center coexists with the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, which encompasses 140,000 acres. The refuge comprises a wide variety of habitats, including coastal dunes, saltwater estuaries and marshes, freshwater impoundments, scrub, pine flatwoods, and hardwood hammocks. These habitats provide sanctuary for more than 1,500 species of plants and animals, including more than 330 species of birds, 31 mammals, 117 fishes, and 65 amphibians and reptiles. For additional information about the refuge, visit http://www.fws.gov/merrittisland. Photo credit: NASA/Ben Smegelsky