When Georgia chicken farmer Mark Glass first started feeding his dead birds to alligators as a way of disposing of them, he didn't realize he was tapping into an industry that would soon have Europe's top fashion houses knocking at his door.
Alligator Farm Turns Out Prized Skins for Purses
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Saved from the brink of extinction, the American alligator now thrives in its native habitat: the swamps and wetlands of the southeastern United States. (Courtesy Mark Glass)
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Alligator hatchlings are generally between 15 and 20 centimeters long. (Courtesy Mark Glass)
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This newly-hatched alligator is one of 100,000 on Mark Glass' farm and will eventually be slaughtered for its skin and meat. (VOA/P. Graitcer)
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Alligator eggs are incubated in plastic trays at Mark Glass' alligator farm. (VOA/P. Graitcer)