Florida is the 22nd largest state in the USA and spans over 53,997 square miles of land area. Over 11,761 square miles of water in the state make it home to a number of aquatic mammals such as alligators and mantees and also the third largest state in terms of water area. Florida's shares its borders to the north with Georgia and Alabama. The state extends into a panhandle to its northwest and shares a short western border with Alabama. The long coastline of the Gulf of Mexico marks the rest of the state's western fringe. To the east is the Atlantic Ocean and to the south are the Straits of Florida, making the state a beautiful peninsula.