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Crocodiles
Crocodiles
Crocodiles are
The estuarine crocodile is the largest reptile alive today. The male of the species, grows to a length of seven metres and can weigh around 1200kg, with the female much smaller in comparison at around three metres in length.
The female crocodile digs a hole in the sand several metres away from the water, lays around fifty eggs and provides protection to the nest by ensuring she stays close to the vicinity. When its time for the eggs to hatch, She is on hand to lend a helping hand to the new borns by carrying them to the water and also providing Motherly care until they are able to fend for themselves.
Despite all this attention and care by the mother, the percentage of survival of these baby crocodiles is very sparse as they not only fall prey to turtles and other large fish but also to the adult male crocodiles who hunt them down to protect their own territory
The temperature of the crocodile's nest determines the sex of the juveniles. If the temperature high, near 32.5C, the embryos are mostly males. As global warming continues, we could see some interesting changes in crocodile populations!
At 33 degrees C,80% of hatchling will be male
At 32 degrees C,80% of hatchling will be female
The Estuarine or saltwater, crocodiles live in social groups. They spend most of their time trying to keep their body temperature constant. These crocodiles can swim large distances over open sea, which probably accounts for their wide distribution.
The mugger crocodile is found in fresh or brackish water. They like slow-moving, shallow water, making the lagoons of Bundala a perfect home. During the dry season muggers dig burrows in the mud to protect themselves from the heat, and they may travel long distances over land to find water if their pool dries up.
Saltwater Crocodile
sometimes referred to as the Estuarine Crocodile.
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Crocodylia
Family: Crocodylidae
Subfamily: Crocodylinae
Genus: Crocodylus
Species: Crocodylus porosus
Saltwater crocodiles are the largest of all living crocodilians and reptiles. It is found in suitable habitat throughout Southeast Asia, Sri Lanka, Western India, Northern Australia, and the surrounding waters. Saltwater crocodiles are known in the Northern Territory of Australia as "salties".
The saltwater crocodile has a longer muzzle than the mugger crocodile, and is twice the length of its breadth at the base.
Indian Gharials
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Crocodilia
Family: Gavialidae
Genus: Gavialis
Species: Gavialis gangeticus
The gharial, sometimes called the Indian gavial or gavial, is one of two surviving members of the family Gavialidae, a long-established group of crocodile-like reptiles with long, narrow jaws. It is a critically endangered species. The gharial is one of the longest of all living crocodilians. Its scarcely distributed across the northern Indian subcontinent: Bhutan, Bangladesh (close to extinction), India (present in small numbers and increasing), Nepal (present and increasing). Usually found in the river systems of Indus (Pakistan) and the Brahmaputra (Bangladesh, Bhutan & North eastern India), the Ganges (Bangladesh, India & Nepal), and the Mahanadi (in the rainforest biome)(India), with small numbers in Kaladan and the Ayeyarwady River in Myanmar. Characteristic elongated, narrow snout, similar only to the closely related False gharial, (Tomistoma schlegelii). The snout shape varies with the age of the saurian. The snout becomes progressively thinner the older the gharial gets. The bulbous growth on the tip of the male's snout is called a 'ghara' (after the Indian word meaning 'pot'), present in mature individuals. The bulbous growth is used for various activities, it is used to generate a resonant hum during vocalization, it acts as a visual lure for attracting females and it is also used to make bubbles which have been associated with the mating rituals of the species.
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