[Blog Post] Australian Animal Facts – The Saltwater Crocodile

• Australian saltwater crocodiles are the largest reptile in the world in terms of mass (can be over 1000kg), and the largest crocodile with a confirmed measurement.
• The males can reach a length of up to 6 or 7 metres (2.5 to 3m for females), though such a size is rare.
• Each crocodile jaw carries 24 sharp teeth meant to grasp and crush, not to chew. They swallow stones that grind the food inside their stomachs (the stomach stones also serve as ballast). The teeth are continuously replaced along the crocodile’s life. Crocodiles can exert enormous pressure when closing their jaws, but the force for opening them is so weak that an adhesive band is enough to keep a large crocodile’s jaw shut. The powerful jaws can be extremely delicate, working like pencils, when removing offspring from the nest.
• Often crocodiles stay on the river banks with their jaws wide open. That is not an aggressive posture, but a way to cool off; they sweat through the mouth!
• Crocodiles have a four-chambered heart like birds (their closest relatives) and mammals, for an active life. When diving, the heart behaves like a three-chambered reptilian heart, enabling them to stay underwater longer.
• 99% of their offspring are eaten in the first year of life by large fish, monitor lizards, herons and adult crocodiles.
• Crocodiles can swim just with the help of their powerful tail up to 40 km (25 m) per hour, and can stay underwater for 2-3 hours. They can also execute jumps out of the water, gaining a lot of height.
• The first crocodiles appeared 240 million years ago, at the same time with the dinosaurs (to which they are related), had less than 1 m (3 ft) in length and ran on two feet! That’s why even today, crocodiles have longer hind limbs than fore limbs.
• Crocodiles can live up to 80 years!

We sell many different crocodile designs and products in our store – click here to check them out.