Fascinating Facts Of Nile Crocodiles

Common name: Nile crocodile

Scientific Name: Crocodylus niloticus

Domain: Eukarya

Nile crocodile

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Reptilia

Order: Crocodilia

Family: Crocodylidae

Genus: Crocodylus

Species: niloticus

The Nile crocodile is a member of the Crocodilia order, a group of reptiles that contains crocodiles,
The Nile crocodile is one of four species of crocodile found in Africa, the others being the slender-snouted crocodile, West African crocodile, and dwarf crocodile. They live throughout sub-Saharan Africa, the Nile Basin, and Madagascar in rivers, freshwater marshes, and mangrove swamps.
The Nile crocodile’s eyes, ears and nostrils are located on the top of the head. This enables the Nile crocodile to remain almost fully submerged while still being aware of everything going on above the water. They have clawed feet and webbed hind feet which make them masters, both in water and on land. They incredibly fast in water and can reach speeds of 17 km/h.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nile crocodiles have greenish-yellow scales with brown or bronze highlights. Their exact coloring will vary depending on their environment. Crocodiles living in fast-moving rivers have lighter colors than crocodiles living in dark, murky swamps; their bodies are their camouflage, so they tend to adapt to their surroundings.
Their powerful jaws hold between 64 and 68 on both sides of their jaw which are replaced if they get broken. These teeth are cone-shaped but finely sharpened. Baby crocodiles have a prominent “egg tooth” that falls off once it serves its purposes of breaking through the shell.
They have the strongest bite in the animal kingdom. The Nile crocodile’s bite force has been recorded to be an incredible 22,000 newtons, making the Lion’s bone-crushing 4,450 newton bite seem more like a nibble.

 

 

 

 

 

They have no natural predators in their hunting ranges, Nile crocodiles will eat anything that moves including humans. It’s estimated that Nile crocodiles kill between 200 – 300 people per year. This isn’t including the number of attacks and injuries that don’t result in a fatality. They have probably killed more people than all other crocodilian species combined.
Nile crocodiles can consume up to half of their body weight at a time. This meat is stored and digested very slowly. Nile crocodiles are cold-blooded animals with efficient metabolisms, they can survive for years without a meal, but most crocodiles don’t wait that long. They eat a few times per month or whenever opportunity knocks.
Large crocodiles swallow stones; they don’t do it out of appreciation for the taste. They do it because the stones help with basic digestion, according to the Miami Science Museum. Rocks in a crocodile’s stomach help crush and grate food. Rock swallowing is especially beneficial for crocodiles that eat whole prey, particularly animals with shells and tough bones. Stone swallowing also might enhance a crocodile’s swimming skills, a definite advantage for these aquatic reptiles. Stones inside of a crocodile’s belly help him stay underwater. A stone that has been swallowed is called a gastrolith can remain inside the stomach for years.
One unusual characteristic of this fearsome predator is its caring nature as a parent. Where most reptiles lay their eggs and move on, mother and father Nile crocs ferociously guard their nests until the eggs hatch, and they will often roll the eggs gently in their mouths to help hatching babies emerge. The sex of crocodile hatchlings is determined by the temperature at which the eggs incubate. At 30ºC or less they will be mostly female; at 31ºC they will be mixed; and at 32ºC, they will be mostly male.
Nile crocodiles have high levels of lactic acid in their blood. This helps them in water environments of all kinds. They can swim underwater for 30 minutes before needing fresh oxygen, and they can remain stock-still underwater for up to two hours at a time. This helps them lie in wait as they hunt.
Crocodiles are the most vocal of reptiles. Among more than five different calls are the deep, vibrating bellow of courting males and the ‘peeping’ of babies inside the egg. This ‘peeping’ encourages the female to excavate the nest.

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, Nile crocodiles are ranked under “least concern” in terms of extinction threat. Their population is between 250,000 – 500,000, and their presence spans the entire continent of Africa.
This wasn’t always the case, however. In the ’50s and ’60s, Nile crocodiles were hunted for their hides, and their population was depleted so much that they became critically endangered. It took a lot of careful conservation efforts to bring their numbers back up, and today, numerous laws and trade regulations have been put into place to protect them from hunters.

Information source:
https://animals.mom.me/crocodiles-swallow-stones-2513.html
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/reptiles/n/nile-crocodile/

February 2019
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