Saltwater crocodile
| Saltwater Crocodile Template:StatusConcern | ||||||||||||||
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| Crocodylus porosus Schneider, 1801 |
The Saltwater Crocodile or Estuarine Crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) is the largest of all living reptiles, and is often said to be the most dangerous to humans. It is found in suitable habitat throughout South-east Asia and northern Australasia.
It is an opportunistic predator capable of taking any animal up to the size of a Buffalo, in the water or on dry land. Generally very lethargic—a trait which helps it survive months at a time without food—it typically loiters in the water or basks in the sun through much of the day, usually preferring to hunt at night. It is, however, capable of moving with great speed when required, striking without warning and having the strength to break a large animal's legs with its tail, or crush a full-grown bovid's skull between its jaws.
Saltwater Crocodiles generally spend the tropical wet season in freshwater swamps and rivers, moving downstream to estuaries in the dry season, and sometimes travelling far out to sea.