What makes crocodiles unique

They also have very good night vision and a strong sense of smell, so they can see animals easily in the dark and smell them from miles away. Crocodiles have an extremely acidic stomach, which helps them to easily digest bones, hooves, and horns. Surprisingly, crocodiles are very social animals that prefer to live near each other. They are also very vocal, and they have unique sounds that mean different things. When a young crocodile is about the hatch from its egg, it will make a chirping sound which alerts the mother.

As they continue to grow, these young crocodiles might give off a high-pitched call to warn others that there is danger nearby. Crocodiles will give off a hissing sound will signal a potential threat, and makes and females will give off different calls when they are trying to talk to each other.

They have more pointed snouts than alligators , and their top and bottom jaw are the same size. Crocodiles live in warm, tropical climates. Smaller species are limited to smaller prey and some specialize in animals like turtles and shellfish. Crocodiles are ambush predators and will often swim close to their prey as it drinks from the river.

The crocodile then uses its powerful tail to lunge forward so it can bite its prey, trapping it in powerful, toothsome jaws. Crocodiles tend to be solitary animals, although sometimes will work together while hunting. In areas with an abundance of prey, large numbers of crocodiles will congregate.

For breeding, males will mate with multiple females and not form an exclusive bond with any one individual. When laying eggs, females will either dig a hole in the river bank or form a pile of wet vegetation depending on species preference.

The females will then protect the nests from danger until the eggs hatch. In some species the female will help the offspring to hatch out and most will carry their young to the water once hatched. For the first year of life the female will also tend to protect her young. Like other reptiles, crocodiles are cold-blooded. So, they have a very slow metabolism, which allows them to survive long periods without food.

They can survive many months on a single large meal. Crocodiles do not have sweat glands and release heat through their mouths. They often sleep with their mouths open. They do not chew their food. Many large crocodilians swallow stones, which may act as ballast to balance their bodies or assist in crushing food, similar to grit ingested by birds. They are amphibious reptiles, spending part of their time in water and part on land.

Although the saltwater crocodile and the American crocodile are able to swim out to sea, no living species of crocodilians can be considered truly marine. Crocs probably scare me more than any other animal on earth.

I would never get anywhere near one, I know they can run a lot faster than man! Your email address will not be published. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. Crocodile Facts 1. They are the biggest reptiles on Earth Saltwater crocodiles are the biggest reptiles in the world. Crocodile Facts: Measured at 20 ft 3 in 6.

He died in captivity at around 8 pm on 10 February , due to pneumonia and cardiac arrest, which was aggravated by a fungus infection and stress. Crocodile Facts: Sarcosuchus skull next to a human. It dates from the early Cretaceous Period of what is now Africa and South America and is one of the largest crocodile-like reptiles that ever lived.