Muggar, Mugger crocodile, Marsh crocodile
The mugger (Crocodylus palustris ) is a crocodile of medium to large size with the broadest snout of all the living members of the genus Crocodylus. It lives in the Indian subcontinent as well as other countries in southern Asia. Like most crocodilians, muggers feature a flat head where their eyes, ears, and nose are on top. This enables them to see, hear and breathe above water when their bodies are underwater. The mugger evolved at least 4.19 million years ago and has been a symbol for the fructifying and destructive powers of the rivers since the Vedic period. It was first scientifically described in 1831 and is protected by law in Iran, India, and Sri Lanka.
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NocturnalNocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal",...
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CarnivoreA carnivore meaning 'meat eater' is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of a...
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InsectivoresAn insectivore is a carnivorous plant or animal that eats insects. An alternative term is entomophage, which also refers to the human practice of e...
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PiscivoresA piscivore is a carnivorous animal that eats primarily fish. Piscivorous is equivalent to the Greek-derived word ichthyophagous. Fish were the die...
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ScavengerScavengers are animals that consume dead organisms that have died from causes other than predation or have been killed by other predators. While sc...
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SemiaquaticSemiaquatic animals are those that are primarily or partly terrestrial but that spend a large amount of time swimming or otherwise occupied in wate...
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Apex predatorAn apex predator, also known as a top predator, is a predator at the top of a food chain and has no natural predators. These animals usually occup...
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PrecocialPrecocial species are those in which the young are relatively mature and mobile from the moment of birth or hatching. Precocial species are normall...
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BurrowingA burrow is a hole or tunnel excavated into the ground by an animal to create a space suitable for habitation, temporary refuge, or as a byproduct ...
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NatatorialNatatorial animals are those adapted for swimming. Some fish use their pectoral fins as the primary means of locomotion, sometimes termed labriform...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
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TerritorialA territory is a sociographical area that which an animal consistently defends against the conspecific competition (or, occasionally, against anima...
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OviparousOviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
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Ambush predatorAmbush predators are carnivorous animals that capture or trap prey by stealth, luring, or by (typically instinctive) strategies utilizing an elemen...
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PolygynyPolygyny is a mating system in which one male lives and mates with multiple females but each female only mates with a single male.
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Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
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starts withThe Mugger crocodile has the broadest snout among living crocodiles. It has a powerful tail and webbed feet. Its visual, hearing, and smelling senses are acute. Hatchlings are pale olive with black spots. Adults are dark olive to grey or brown. The head is rough without any ridges and has large scutes around the neck that are well separated from the back. Scutes usually form 4, rarely 6 longitudinal series and 16 or 17 transverse series. The limbs have keeled scales with serrated fringes on the outer edges, and the outer toes are extensively webbed.
The mugger crocodile occurs in the Indian subcontinent as well as surrounding countries: Sri Lanka in the east, Iran in the west, and also Pakistan and Nepal. This species is found in freshwater lakes, marshes, and ponds, and has also adapted well to reservoirs, human-made ponds, irrigation canals, and coastal saltwater lagoons. This crocodile likes shallow water no more than 5 m deep, and it avoids fast-flowing rivers. It will sometimes bury itself in the mud to avoid the searing heat in India in the dry season.
Muggers are highly social and their social behavior includes gregarious behavior, communication, territorial activities, and dominance interactions. Between adults and also adults and their young, there are many vocalizations. Most of the socializing takes place during the seasonal mating activities. Body postures like snout raising and tail thrashing are used by males when establishing territories and trying to gain dominance before courtship and mating. Like other crocodile species, activities include basking, diving, and swimming. In addition, a unique and important activity is burrowing. Burrows are used for thermoregulation during hot and cold periods of the day and at night muggers come out to seek food. During dry seasons, muggers walk many kilometers overland in search of water and prey and they can chase prey for short distances on land. They are adapted better than most other crocodiles to life on land.
Muggers are primarily carnivorous, eating mostly fish, frogs, crustaceans, insects, mammals, birds, and sometimes monkeys and squirrels. They also scavenge on dead animals.
Mugger crocodiles exhibit a polygynous mating system, in which one male mates with more than one female. Breeding is from February to April. This species is a hole-nesting one. Once a female finds a suitable place for digging her nesting hole, she usually uses it for most if not all of her nests over the years. About one month after mating, 10-48 eggs are laid into the nesting hole, with the average clutch size being 28. Muggers sometimes lay two clutches a year in captivity, but it is not known what happens in the wild. Incubation is for 55-75 days. On hatching, the eggs are carried to nearby water by the mother or sometimes the father. Young crocodiles stay in loosely organized groups along with the adults for as long as one year before dispersing. The females reach maturity at around 6 years old when they are 1.7-2 meters in length, and males are mature at about 10 years old, at 2.6 meters.
The main threats to this animal come from the destruction of its habitat and illegal hunting for its skin and for the alternative medicine market. Another threat is egg collection. These crocodiles are also notorious fish stealers, eating ensnared fish, and sometimes they themselves become caught in fishnet and drown.
According to the IUCN Red List, the total mugger crocodile population size is around 5,700-8,700 mature individuals. Specific populations have been estimated in these areas: 3,021 to 4,287 mature individuals in India; 200-300 individuals in Iran; around 600 individuals in Pakistan, with more than 150 individuals held in captivity; 200 wild individuals in Nepal; and around 2,400-3,500 wild individuals in Sri Lanka. Overall, currently, mugger crocodiles are classified as Vulnerable (VU), but their numbers today remain stable.
Social animals are those animals that interact highly with other animals, usually of their own species (conspecifics), to the point of having a rec...