Crocodiles

Crocodiles are reptiles that have a physical form similar to a giant lizard. Crocodile, Animal Purba a fierce and unique. Crocodiles are large reptiles that live in water. Scientifically speaking, covers all species of crocodile Crocodylidae tribal members, including the crocodile fish (Tomistoma schlegelii). However this name can also be worn loosely to refer to the 'crocodile' alligators, Kaiman and gavial; the crocodile relatives of different tribes.

Crocodiles are generally inhabit freshwater habitats like rivers, lakes, swamps and other wetlands, but there also live in brackish water such as estuarine crocodiles. Crocodile is the main food animals such as the vertebrate fish, reptiles and mammals, sometimes prey on mollusks and crustaceans depend on the species. Crocodiles are ancient animals, which is only slightly changed because of evolution since the age of dinosaurs.

Known also name a few areas to mention crocodiles, such as buhaya (Sd.); buhaya (bjn); aged or pickpocket (Jw.; bicokok (Btw.), bekatak, or crocodiles frogs to mention smallish crocodile fat; senyulong, crocodile jolong-jolong (Mly.), or alligator for the first time-for the first time to refer to the crocodile fish, crocodiles pandanus, the crocodiles are greenish; copper alligator, crocodile brownish yellow; and others.

In English crocodile known as crocodile. The name is derived from the mention of the Greeks against the alligator they saw in the Nile, krokodilos; word formations that stem from kroko word, meaning 'gravel', and deilos which means 'worm' or 'people'. They call it "worm rock" because watching habits of crocodiles bask on the banks of the river is rocky.

Physical and behavioral


Crocodiles, like dinosaurs, have the ribs are modified into gastralia. Outside of its ancient crocodile reptiles are actually complex. Unlike the usual reptiles, crocodiles have a four-heart bear, midriff (diaphragm) and the cerebral cortex. On the other hand, the outer morphology clearly shows the way of living aquatic predators. He was a "streamlined" allows it to swim fast. Crocodile folded her legs back attached to his body, to reduce water resistance and enhance speed allowed during swimming. The toes are webbed swimming behind him, which, although not used as a driving force when swimming fast, the membrane is very handy when he had to suddenly turn around or make sudden movements in the water, or to start swimming. Webbed feet, is also an advantage when crocodiles need to move or walk in shallow water.

His tongue stuck in their mouth alligator and crocodile can not menggerakkanya free like us.

In addition to very quickly move in the water, crocodiles are also able to walk on land with a speed of about 28 miles / hour or about 45 km / hour.

Crocodiles can move very quickly over short distances, even out of water. This beast has a very strong jaws, which can bite with incredible power, making it an animal with the biggest bite force. Pressure bites crocodile is no less than 5,000 psi (pounds per square inch; equivalent to 315 kg / cm ²); compared with bite forces rottweiler that only 335 psi, the great white shark of 400 psi, or hyena (hyena) around 800-1000 psi. Crocodile teeth pointed and sharp, very useful for holding prey. Crocodile attacks its prey by biting prey to pounce at the same time, then pull firmly and abruptly into the water. Therefore, the muscles around the jaw in such a well developed so it can shut very strong. The mouth that has been shut so also extremely difficult to open, similar to the bite of the gecko. But vice versa, the muscles that function to open the crocodile's mouth is very weak. Researchers crocodile large enough wrapping adhesive tape (duct tape) several times, or tie a rubber inner tube at the end of the snout shut, for keeping your mouth shut while it is still carried out observations and measurements, or when to transport the animal safely. Alligator claws and nails were strong and sharp, but the neck is very stiff so that the crocodile is not so easy to attack sideways or backward.

Crocodile tails act as paddles when swimming, so it helps to move fast in the water.


Crocodiles also have 4 mazes in his heart so similar to humans again. A crocodile can not sweat because they do not have sweat glands, the crocodile released his body heat through the mouth by a yawn.

Crocodiles prey on fish, birds, mammals, and occasionally also other smaller alligators. This reptile is an ambush predator, he waited for prey, land animals, or fish over and jump on him abruptly. As the cold-blooded animals, these predators can survive long enough without food, and seldom really need to move to hunt their prey. Although it seems slow, crocodiles are top predators in their environment, and some species have been observed attacking and killing sharks. Bird kettle exception is Egypt, which is known to have a symbiotic relationship with crocodiles. That said, this kettle bird used to eat animal parasites that live in the mouth of a crocodile, and for that the king of the river opened her mouth wide and let the pot go clean it up.


In the breeding season and nesting crocodiles can be very aggressive and easily attack humans or other animals approaching. In the spawning season is very ferocious crocodiles guard their nests and eggs. Parent female alligator usually keep their eggs with buried under mounds of earth or sand mixed with the litter of leaves. Parent then stayed with him from a distance of about 2 meters.

Crocodile embryos do not have sex chromosomes, the chromosomes that determine sex of the child to be hatched. So not as human beings, sex is determined genetically crocodile no. Instead, sex is determined by the incubation temperature or the temperature of the nest where the eggs hatched. In the estuarine crocodile, a temperature of about 31.6 ° C will result in males, slightly lower or higher than the figure would produce a female crocodile. Egg incubation period is about 80 days, depending on the average temperature of the nest.

Crocodile suspected to have the instinct to return to their homes of origin or often called homing instinct. Three tail ferocious crocodiles in northern Australia have been moved to a new location, as far as 400 km, using a helicopter. But in three weeks these animals are known to have arrived back at the place of origin. This incident was observed through a tracking device installed on the reptile's body.

According to current knowledge, the crocodile has a closer kinship with birds and dinosaurs, compared to most reptiles generally. The first three groups, plus a group of pterosaurs, classified into a large group Archosauria (= 'reptile which controls'

Calculating Age Crocodile

Crocodiles can live up to 60 years old. Almost the same as modern humans.

There is no conclusive way to calculate the age of crocodiles, in addition to knowing penetasannya first time, although there are several techniques that have been developed. The most common method used to estimate the length of this animal is by counting growth rings in bones and teeth. Each layer of the circle illustrates the change in growth rate, which may be caused by changes in the dry and rainy seasons are repeated every year. Keeping in mind these inaccuracies, the oldest crocodile species is probably the biggest. Estuarine crocodile (C. porosus) is estimated to average life of up to 70 years, with a few individuals that are proven to exceed 100 years. One of the oldest crocodiles recorded died in Russia at the age of the zoo about 115 years.

A male freshwater crocodiles that are kept in Zoo Australia was estimated to be 130 years old. He was rescued Bob Irwin and Steve Irwin from the wild after being shot twice by hunters. As a result of gunfire, the crocodile (which is now dubbed as "Mr.. Freshy") lost his right eye.

Physical Size Cost

Crocodile body size varies greatly from species to species, ranging from the dwarf crocodile to the giant estuarine crocodiles. Large-bodied species can grow longer than 5 m and has a weight exceeding 1,200 kg.

However, babies only crocodile measuring about 20 cm when hatched from eggs. Largest crocodile species are estuarine crocodiles, which live in Southeast Asia to the northern Australia.

The size of the largest estuarine crocodile is still debated. The biggest crocodile ever recorded was a giant estuarine crocodiles along the 8.6 m, which was shot by a school teacher in Australia. While the largest living crocodile is a crocodile along the estuary of 7.1 m in Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary, Orissa, India. In June 2006, his record is recorded in The Guinness Book of World Records.

Reported the largest crocodile ever found is kind of saltwater crocodiles or salt water with a length reaches 6.5 meters.

One type of saltwater crocodiles, but it seems that alligators have only 3-4 meters long. While the alligator has the shortest maximum growth is Caviers Dwarf crocodile CARMA type which has only about 1.5 meters long.

Two other records are authoritative about the size of the largest crocodile is a record two male crocodiles along the 6.2 m. The first crocodile was shot in the Mary River, Northern Territory, Australia in 1974 by a poacher, which is then measured by a forestry officer. While the second crocodile was killed in the Fly River, Papua New Guinea. The size of the second crocodile is actually derived from the skin, as measured by Jerome Montague, a wildlife researcher. And because the skin is always smaller size (shrink) the size of the original animal, the crocodile is believed that at least size 10 cm longer when alive.


The biggest crocodile that ever kept in captivity is an estuarine crocodile crossbreed with Siamese crocodile named Yai hatched on June 10, 1972 at the Garden's famous Samutprakarn crocodile in Thailand. These reptiles have a body length of up to 6 m and reached 1114.27 kg weight.

Another giant pet crocodile is a crocodile named Gomek estuary. This animal was captured by George Craig in Papua New Guinea and then sold to St. Petersburg. Augustine Alligator Farm in Florida, USA. This crocodile died of heart disease in February 1997 in a fairly old age. According to the captivity, when the dead Gomek 5.5 m in length and may be aged between 70-80 years.

Bhitarkanika the largest crocodile expected along the 7.62 m These allegations gained the experts based on the size of a crocodile skull held by the Kanika Royal Family. Crocodiles are likely to be shot dead near Dhamara around 1926 and then the skull preserved by the King of Kanika at the time. Length above allegations obtained through the calculation, keeping in mind that the length of a crocodile skull about one-seventh the total length of its body.