How fast crocodile on land

A crocodile's greatest strength is not its endurance and stamina on land, but it's ability to launch a surprise attack when you're least expecting it. In other words, crocodiles cannot afford to give their prey the chance to flee - fleeing prey on land at least is normally dinner lost. Never under-estimate the attacking speed of crocodile from a standing start, and never under-estimate how fast they can move when running away from you!

Read on There are three main "gaits" styles of locomotion that describe how crocodilians get around on land. The " belly crawl " is typically a fairly slow gait in which the crocodile slides over a slippery substrate such as mud, using its legs to push itself along on its belly. However, this gait can be modified to shift that bulky body at impressively high speeds, normally away from a threat.

The next gait is the " high walk " left , which is uniquely crocodilian - resembling the erect gait of a mammal with the legs directly underneath the animal, rather than the splayed gait of a reptile.

This is a slow means of getting around, but it is very useful for picking the bulky body off the floor to negotiate obstacles or to avoid the friction induced by scraping the belly against non-slippery substrates such as soil or rock. The high walk is normally used for short distances, but long-distances hikes are quite possible.

You can see a video of a high walk here hit the "BACK" button in your browser when you're done. When moving quickly away from a threat, crocodilians employ one of two methods on land.

The first is the faster "belly run" which I've already mentioned, in which the legs move very rapidly in a typically reptilian pattern to propel the crocodile forward. During this belly run, the crocodile starts to move its body in a sinusoidal manner along the horizontal plane, almost as if it were swimming. This flexion adds power to the stride by helping to position the limbs for the greatest leverage when they contact the ground. The power of the body torsion contributes to the power of the stride.

It also enables the crocodile to transition quickly into a swimming style once it begins to enter the water. Crocodiles are territorial and have rather complex social structures, something that is very unusual for reptiles. They tend to hunt and raise hatchlings together. To protect their territory and nests, both the male and female crocodile will chase you until you are at a good distance away from what they are protecting.

There are certain hierarchies within the group that are maintained through vocal grunts and gestures, touch and body language.

Hey, what is a group of crocodiles called? People disagree. So you can decide whether to call it a congregation , nest , bask or float. Learn more about the collective nouns for African animals here. There are many different species of crocodiles in the world and they fall into two categories; saltwater and freshwater crocodiles. Most crocodiles in Africa are Nile crocodiles and inhabit fresh water. All crocodiles can only run at top speed for short distances , usually only metres at a time.

Crocodiles look slow, but they use their size and force to propel them forward. There are two ways that the crocodiles get around on land while running.

The first method is a kind of gallop on firm ground. They use their hind and front legs as synchronized pairs. They launch themselves off the ground with their hind legs and then land on their front legs.

When they land they curve their body so their hind legs fall almost in line with the front pair. Then the action is repeated. It is a very effective and a similar way to how a rabbit runs. Not all the crocodile species but mostly the smaller species run like this on solid ground and it is still a good and frightening sight to behold. The second way crocodiles can run is by using their belly.

This is usually in a muddy substance and not on hard dry land. They lay on their bellies and push themselves forward with their legs next to them.

This way they do not put their full weight on their small legs, plus they can move very fast forward by using their body weight as the propelling force. The belly run is often a good pose as it helps them to get in the swimming position when they hit the water.

Crocodiles swim faster than they can run and are also excellent divers. They can hold their breath for up to one hour under water! Most crocodiles can swim faster than they run. More dangerously, they can swim effortlessly and keep up a fast pace for a long time. A human may run faster than a crocodile on land, but it will never win a swimming race. Crocodiles cannot run at their top speeds for long distances, so they will not win any African animal race.

Crocodile eyes are located very closely together and they are oriented forward. This enables them to judge distance very accurately so they can determine the exact location of their prey prior to attack. Crocodiles have excellent hearing, which helps them to locate prey particularly in poor light or low visibility conditions. While crocodiles may regularly lose teeth, they have a second tooth sitting in reserve underneath the external tooth, which can replace the lost tooth.

Crocodiles can grow up to new teeth over their lifetime. The jaws of crocodiles are designed to generate enormous power when the jaws are closing.

This enables them to quickly crush prey. The sex of young saltwater crocodiles is determined by the incubation temperature. Below 30 o C the hatchlings will be female, and above 32 o C they will be male. It takes females 10 to 12 years, and males 16 years and more to reach maturity.