GHARIAL
GHARIAL The Gharial ( Gavialis gangeticus ), also known as the ‘ Fish-Eating Crocodile’ , is a species of Crocodile in the family Gavialidae and among the longest of all living crocodiles on earth. Mature females are 2.6 m – 4.5 m (8 ft 6 in –14 ft 9 in) long and males 3 m – 6 m (9 ft 10 in – 19 ft 8 in). They 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, thin snout and 110 sharp, interlocking teeth. It is the most thoroughly aquatic crocodile, and leaves the water only for basking and building nests on moist sandbanks. The Gharial probably evolved in the northern Indian subcontinent. Fossil Gharial remains were excavated in Pliocene deposits in the Shivalik Hills and the Narmada River valley. It currently inhabits rivers in the plains of the northern part of the Indian subcontinent. The ...