Gharial
Sign in to saveThe gharial (Gavialis gangeticus), also known as gavial or fish-eating crocodile, is a crocodilian in the family Gavialidae and among the longest of all living crocodilians. Mature females are long, and males . Adult males have a distinct boss at the end of the snout, which resembles an earthenware pot known as a ghara, hence the name "gharial". The gharial is well adapted to catching fish because of its long, narrow snout and 110 sharp, interlocking teeth.
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The gharial is a long, fish-eating crocodilian found in the family Gavialidae, recognizable by its distinctively long, narrow snout and sharp interlocking teeth that make it highly specialized for catching fish. Named after a pot-shaped structure on males' snouts, gharials are among the longest living crocodilians today.
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Article
19 sectionsContents
- Etymology
- Taxonomy
- Evolution
- Phylogeny
- Characteristics
- Distribution and habitat
- Behaviour and ecology
- Feeding ecology
- Reproduction
- Development
- Threats
- Conservation
- Reintroduction programmes
- ''In situ'' projects
- In captivity
- In culture
- See also
- References
- External links
The gharial (Gavialis gangeticus), also known as gavial or fish-eating crocodile, is a crocodilian in the family Gavialidae and among the longest of all living crocodilians. Mature females are long, and males . Adult males have a distinct boss at the end of the snout, which resembles an earthenware pot known as a ghara, hence the name "gharial". The gharial is well adapted to catching fish because of its long, narrow snout and 110 sharp, interlocking teeth.
The gharial probably evolved in the northern Indian subcontinent. Fossil gharial remains were excavated in Pliocene deposits in the Sivalik Hills and the Narmada River valley. It currently inhabits rivers in the plains of the northern part of the Indian subcontinent. It is the most thoroughly aquatic crocodilian, and leaves the water only for basking and building nests on moist sandbanks. Adults mate at the end of the cold season. Females congregate in spring to dig nests, in which they lay 20–95 eggs. They guard the nests and the young, which hatch before the onset of the monsoon. The hatchlings stay and forage in shallow water during their first year, but move to sites with deeper water as they grow.