How to Draw a Cartoon Alligator (the Easy Way) doc

How to Draw a Cartoon Alligator
(the Easy Way)



Do you want learn how to draw a cartoon alligator? It's easy. Jump in,
the water’s lovely and warm! This grinning gator is a fine example of
the species known as crocodilians, or ‘crocs’ for short. Having lived on
the planet for more than 200 million years, it’s certainly fair to say
these awesome creatures are born survivors.
And, whether swimming in the rivers of the Mississippi or enjoying the
Florida sunshine while maybe sipping a ‘croctail’, alligators always
make their rivals green with envy. Impress your friends with how well
you can draw one of these fine creatures by following our simple steps.
You’ll soon be making a splash in the art world!

STEP-1: Start with the Tail
Our first step in learning how to draw a cartoon alligator starts with the
gator’s huge, powerful tail, which somes in very handy when gliding
through the water.
Starting at the tip, draw a curled shape – almost like a big comma.
Then, we’re ready to draw the other side of the tail – just make the arc
of the curve wider. Just imagine Alladin’s shoes and you’re pretty
much there!


STEP-2: The Body
Having finished our cool croc’s tail, let’s continue learning how to
draw a cartoon alligator by drawing the rest of this reptilian relic’s
body. American gators can grow up to 15 feet or 4.6 meters, so we need
to give a sense of just how powerful our river roaming friend is. Add

some features such as an eye and the first lines of our gator’s grinning
jaw.
Start the top of the head by drawing an upside down ‘U’ shape just
above the eye. These large lizard-like creatures have short, dumpy legs,
so let’s sketch these in by drawing two shapes that look a little like a
small ‘d’. Don’t let our gator’s little limbs fool you, though – crocs can
swim up to 20 miles (32 kilometers) per hour and, on land, can run at
speeds of up to 11 miles (17.6 kilometers) per hour!


STEP-3: The Feet, Snout and Mouth
For our next step in learning how to draw a cartoon alligator, let’s add
some more detail to our great gator by finishing off the feet and adding
a snout and the rest of the mouth. For the legs, just draw two staight
lines which meet the curly lines you drew earlier. Then, draw two short
lines on each foot to show our gator’s ‘toes’.
There, our cool croc is almost ready to walk! An alligator’s snout has
special organs in it which give our buddy a great sense of smell – draw
a wavy line which meets the mouth shape we drew in the previous step.
While we’re here, let’s also add the inside of the mouth, ready for those
all-important teeth!


STEP-4: Bring it To Life
Are you enjoying learning how to draw a cartoon alligator? Soon you'll
be an expert at this. Now it’s time to really bring our gator to life –
finish off the head by drawing another upside down ‘U’ shape next to
the eye which meets the snout. An alligator’s eyes are placed either side
on the top of the head so our buddy can get a clear view of his or her
prey above the water – we’ll add another eye in the next step.

We already have a grinning gator, but let’s make this more pronounced
by adding an expression line at the corner of the mouth – just draw an
arc shape. You may have noticed that our gator doesn’t have any ears –
this is because a gator’s ears are actually just tiny slits that close up
when they’re in the water. That doesn’t mean they don’t have awesome
hearing, though – in fact, a mommy gator can hear her hatchlings
calling from inside the egg!
We’re now ready for the most important part – the teeth! Crocs are
carnivores and will eat just about anything they can catch in the water
or on the river bank, including fish, turtles, birds and even monkeys!
Draw some sharp-looking teeth by sketching a series up ‘V’ shapes
along the top and bottom of the mouth.
Gators have rather poor table manners – rather than chew their food,
they grab it in their teeth and then shake it so they can swallow whole
chunks. This gesture is often known as the ‘death roll’ so don’t be
alarmed if you invite a gator for dinner and he does this at the table!

STEP-5: Finish Up
Our cool croc is looking ready to take to the water, but we just need to
add some finishing touches to create a truly awesome alligator! Add
some detail to the gator’s back by drawing lots of upside down ‘V’
shapes – it looks like a lizard’s back, doesn’t it? In fact, the name
‘alligator’ comes from the Spanish phrase ‘el lagarto’, because early
Spanish settlers in Florida thought that is what these amazing creatures
were.
Now, let’s add a nostril to help our cool croc’s amazing sense of smell.
After this, draw another line on the gator’s body to show the underside
of our buddy’s belly and just draw a small arc opposite the other eye.
It’s time for some color! Rub out any lines you don’t need and get that
green felt pen at the ready – don’t forget to make the underside of the

belly a lighter shade.
Next, color the inside of the mouth red to really show off those sharp
teeth! Our final step in learning how to draw a cartoon alligator is
finishing up the eye. Color the eye in black, remembering to leave a
small area white – this makes an awesome highlight and gives our gator
real personality. There, you’re good to go! Have fun and we’ll see you
later, alligator!