What Do Crocodiles Eat?
Crocodiles eat meat. The world’s 23 species of crocodiles, and their wider-snouted cousins, the alligators, are opportunist carnivores. That means they eat whatever meat is available, from trophy fish and birds to big game and even domesticated animals. On some occasions, they have even been known to eat humans.
How Crocodiles Hunt
Native to tropical regions on both hemispheres, crocodiles mostly eat fish. They attract fish by regurgitating a small amount of food. When fish come to feed on the regurgitated food, the crocodile grabs it.
However, when fish are scarce or other prey gets near, crocodiles will be quick to strike. They attack land animals or birds by quickly striking — often from an underwater position — then sinking to the bottom, often with a few disorienting barrel rolls. The food is then either eaten or saved for a hungrier time.
Crocodiles Don’t Chew
Crocodiles do not have the ability to chew their food. Those big, scary teeth are necessary to catch larger prey and to clamp down on it while it drags it underwater, but that is the extent of their use. Food is swallowed whole. Crocodiles have one of the most acidic stomachs of any vertebrate, which helps in digestion, including the bones and shells of their prey.
Crocodiles Eat Stones?
Crocodiles don’t just eat meat, though. They eat stones too. According to the Museum of Science in Miami, American crocodiles will eat rocks to aid in digestion. Since they never actually chew their food, only tear it, the rocks sit in the stomach to help crocodiles digest food and possibly make them feel fuller when fish and other prey are at a minimum.
A study in the journal Integrative Organismal Biology reported that this stone swallowing behavior serves another purpose. The weight of the stones improves the crocodile’s ability to dive and stay submerged underwater up to 35 minutes longer.
Crocodiles Don’t Eat Often
A study on Nile crocodiles observed that these reptiles eat about 50 times per year. Crocodiles store up to 60% of all food intake as fat reserves in the tail and back, which can be called upon at times when food is scarce. This helps them to go for long periods without eating. Larger crocodiles may be able to survive up to two years without eating.
Resources
University of Michigan Museum of Zoology – “Crocodylia”
