For my first article, I wanted to emphasize on some of the lesser known facts about our planet’s most under-rated creatures – The Crocodile.
Most of us associate crocodiles with being very lazy creatures, which live on land and water hunting animals for food. Yet, there are many unique and amazing facts about this reptile which you might find highly interesting.
So let’s take a few moments to gain an insight into one of this planet’s most amazing creatures.
Crocodiles are known for being very dangerous creatures, however, they are an important part of the ecosystem as they help in cleaning up the environment by feeding off dead animals and thereby, keeping the river and surrounding areas clean.
Here are some fantastic facts about the Crocodile:
- The crocodile is one of the most successful predators to have been around since the Triaissic period around 250 million years ago. It has adapted to its changing environment over the years to remain at the very top of the food chain.
- Amazingly, the Crocodile is related more to birds and dinosaurs than to other reptiles!!!!
- It is found almost all over the world at all continents. The most prominent ones are the Nile Crocodile found in Africa, the Cayman found in South America and the Gharial found in the Indian plains.
- It is known to have the strongest bite-force in the animal world; this creature is feared by almost all prey. Strangely though, it is not the bite that kills its prey, but rather the suffocation caused by it (prey) being dragged down underwater. The victim is made to drown and after that the crocodile proceeds to devour it. The crocodile typically stalks its prey by waiting for a victim under water and attacks with unimaginable force going straight for the victim’s neck or leg and tries to pull it into the water.
- In a crocodile meal, there is no such thing as crocodile leftovers. If a crocodile manages to kill a buffalo, it will eat up not only its flesh, but also its bones, skin, hair and horns!!!!
- The crocodile cannot chew its prey, and hence has to swallow its prey by tearing up pieces of meat. Crocodiles grab on to a piece of meat and turn round and round in order to rip the piece of meat from the main carcass.
- What’s more, crocodiles have been known to even attack and kill other carnivores like Lions!!!
- While they look very sluggish on land, Crocodiles are astonishingly capable of achieving reasonably high speeds on land (~ 15 km/hr) over very short distances. This is also helpful in catching prey.
- The crocodile, being a reptile, lays its eggs under sand on the river bank. If the temperature of the eggs under the sand mound is around 88 Degrees Fahrenheit, the litter will consist of females and if the temperature of the eggs under the sand mound is around 91 Degrees Fahrenheit, the litter will consist of males.
- Crocodiles are different from alligators in the sense that they have a pointed “V” shaped mouth unlike an alligators “U” shaped mouth. Moreover, when crocodiles close their mouths – teeth of the upper and lower jaw are both visible whereas for an alligator only the teeth of the upper jaw are visible.
It’s presence as a top predator, in the food chain, helps keep the rivers and seas clean, and also a check on the herbivore population.
To summarize, this reptile’s adaptability on land and water has ensured its survival, enabling it to dwell and live for millions of years. It has been around ever since the time of the dinosaurs and has managed to escape extinction so far.
