Crocodiles (The Higher Reptiles)
Alligators and caimans are classified in the family Alligatoridae, while crocodiles are members of the Crocodylidae. The snout of an alligator is wider and U-shaped, whereas that of a crocodile is very long, narrow, and V-shaped. The alligator's large snout gives it additional crushing ability to consume animals like turtles, which are part of its diet. Although still quite strong, the narrow crocodile snout is not truly suitable for prey like turtles but is very adaptable for fish and mammalian prey.
The crocodile's upper and lower jaws are almost the same width, which causes the teeth to be exposed along the jaw line in an interlocking pattern even when the mouth is closed. This is another morphological distinction between the crocodile and the alligator. Additionally, they have a huge fourth tooth on the lower jaw that fits in the grooves on the upper jaw right behind the nostrils. In contrast, an alligator's upper jaw is wider, allowing its lower jaw's teeth to fit into the upper jaw's sockets when its mouth is closed. Along the lower jaw line, only the upper jaw's teeth are visible. Alligators look blackish, but crocodiles are a softer shade of olive brown. Alligators and crocodiles have sensory pits that are scattered around the upper and lower jaws and resemble beard stubble. The animals are thought to be able to identify their prey by detecting minor variations in water pressure. The term "dermal pressure receptors" refers to these sensory pits. Crocodiles lay their eggs in mud or sand nests next to brackish water, whereas alligators build their nests out of plant mounds close to freshwater.
A rottweiler, a huge great white shark, and a hyena all have biting forces of less than 335 pounds per square inch, 400 pounds, and 800-1000 pounds, respectively, compared to the crocodile's more than 5,000 pounds per square inch. The muscles that open the mouth are incredibly frail.
The largest crocodile ever seen was a massive saltwater crocodile that was shot in Australia's Queensland in 1957 and measured 8.6 metres long and weighed 1,352 kilos. The longest known living crocodile is a saltwater crocodile that was found in Orissa, India, and measured 7.1 meters long. It is a resident of the Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary and was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records in June 2006. Males can grow to be up to 6 or 7 meters long as adults, however they are incredibly uncommon to measure over 5 metres. Females are smaller and rarely grow taller over 3 meters; 2.5 meters is considered to be quite huge.
Family Crocodylidae
Family CROCODYLUS
Estuaries in southern Florida, northwest South America, and the Caribbean are home to the American crocodile Crocodylus acutus. 6 m long.
Slender-snouted Crocodile (Crocodylus cataphractus) (studies in DNA and morphology suggest that this species may be more basal than Crocodylus, and therefore belongs in its own genus, Mecistops)
Crocodylus intermedius, the Orinoco crocodile, can be found in South America's Amazon River.
Freshwater crocodile of Northern Australia, Crocodylus johnsoni.
Crocodile from the Philippines: Crocodylus mindorensis.
Crocodylus moreletii, often known as the Mexican or Morelet's Crocodile.
Crocodylus niloticus, sometimes known as the African or Nile crocodile, is 7 metres long.
Parts of the Philippines are home to the New Guinea Crocodile, Crocodylus novaeguineae.
Mugger, sometimes known as the Indian Crocodile, is found in India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka.
Crocodylus porosus, sometimes known as an estuarine or saltwater crocodile, is found from southern Asia to Australia. 7 m long.
Crocodile from Cuba, Crocodylus rhombifer.
Crocodile of Siam, Crocodylus siamensis.
OSTEOLAEMUS, genus
Osteolaemus, which refers to the vast bony plates seen in the neck and abdomen, is derived from the Greek words osteon, which means bone, and laimos, which means throat.
The dwarf crocodile is Osteolaemus tetraspis. Tetraspis, which means "four shields," comes from a group of four bony plates on the back of the neck called nuchal scales.
There are 2 subspecies of it:
Observed in western Africa is There are 2 subspecies of it:
Congo-based O. tetraspis osborni (formerly Zaire). Previously known as Osteoblepharon osborni, this species..
Observed in western Africa is O. tetraspis tetraspis.
Congo-based O. tetraspis osborni (formerly Zaire). Previously known as Osteoblepharon osborni, this species.
Family Illigatoridae
Family ALLIGATOR
Alligators differ from crocodiles primarily in that they have wider and shorter heads with more obtuse snouts; the fourth, larger under-jaw tooth is received into a pit created for it within the upper one rather than an external notch; they lack the jagged fringe found on the hind legs and feet of the crocodile; the toes of the hind feet are only partially webbed; and they have an intolerance to salinity, Crocodiles are typically more harmful to people than alligators.
Asian Alligator (Alligator sinensis)
It measures only approximately 5 feet long. found in the Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Anhui provinces along the lower Yangtze River. The Chinese Alligator, unlike the American Alligator, is completely armored; in fact, only a small number of crocodilians have armoured bellies.
U.S. Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis)
A sizable, semi-aquatic, and armoured reptile related to crocodiles is called an American alligator. The length of its body alone varies from 6 to 14 feet. It is almost entirely covered with coarse scales, has prominent eyes and nostrils, and is nearly black in colour. It has a huge, long head with upper teeth that are visible along the jawline. Its front feet have five toes, while the back feet have four webbed toes. From the southern Virginia–North Carolina boundary, all the way up the Atlantic coast to Florida, and along the Gulf of Mexico as far west as the Rio Grande in Texas, American alligators can be found.
PALEOSUCHUS GENUS
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