Crocodiles

Crocodiles are among the largest reptiles alive today. They are descendant from an ancient reptile which reached up to 50 ft. long. Today they can range anywhere from 8 ft. to 12 ft. long.

A crocodile's body is long and "cigar-shaped." Their webbed feet and strong tails are used for swimming.

They have short legs, tough hides and sharp teeth. The lower fourth tooth is very long. It fits into a groove along the side of the upper jaw and is visible when the jaw is closed.

They have long snouts, which comes to a point. Their eyes and nostrils lay on top of their snout giving them the advantage of being able to see and breathe while swimming. In front of their throat there is a slit-like valve that leads to the nostrils. This valve shuts while they are underwater, keeping water out of the lungs while they eat small animals.

Though not much is known about breeding habits, we do know that they lay eggs (as do most reptiles). The eggs are about the size of a hen's eggs, however they are longer and the shell is less brittle. They lay their eggs in a nest of vegetation and rubble or bury them in sand.

Some female crocodiles guard their nests. When female crocodiles hear their offspring moving around and "grunting" they dig them out of the nest. On occasion she will even help their young hatch and then carry them in her mouth down to the water. The average American crocodile hatches after 105 days and they can be up to 9 inches long at birth.

There are 12 species of crocodile alive today. Most "true" crocodiles are located in the eastern hemisphere. However, there are four species of crocodile in North and South America.

The American Crocodile can be found in the south of Florida, on the larger West Indian Islands and in Central America. The Nile Crocodile can be found through out Africa except in Sahara and the northern coast. The Congo Basin Crocodile is known as a "dwarf" crocodile and only reaches 8 ft. long. There are two kinds of dwarf crocodiles in Africa. One is very rare and is related closely to the true crocodile. The Giant Saltwater Crocodile can be found anywhere between India and Australia. Also in Australia is the Australian Crocodile. In India and Pakistan you'll find the Mugger Crocodile. And the "False Gavial", whose snout in narrower, can be found Sumatra and the Malay Peninsula.

Crocodiles tend to prefer tropical climates. They live near large, shallow bodies of water, open swamps or marshes.

A typical diet for a crocodile consists of small animals, however, they also have been known to attack larger animals as well and even humans. They can swallow the smaller animals whole, but the larger animals have to be broken up. They do this by grabbing the animal with their mouth and spinning lengthwise in the water until the animal is small enough to eat.

In the past these animals were greatly hunted for their hides. Their hides would in turn be used to make shoes and handbags. This, however, was changed when they became dangerously close to extinction. Today there are laws protecting crocodiles and even some conservationists collect eggs and release the crocodiles back into the wild when they are older.