Gharial: a two-minute wildlife lesson

Crocodiles and Big Reptiles · day 1 of 7

Five facts

1. Grown males carry a round bump on the tip of the snout that looks like a clay pot called a ghara. That pot gave the gharial its name.
2. The hollow pot on a male's nose lets him hiss loudly enough to be heard 75 m away. Scientists think the sound draws in females.
3. Its long, thin snout slips through water with hardly any drag, and its sharp teeth interlock to grip fish. It never chews: dinner goes down whole.
4. No other crocodilian is so tied to water. The gharial climbs out only to warm up in the sun and to dig nests on damp sandbanks.
5. Gharial eggs are the biggest of any crocodilian, about 160 g each. When the babies chirp inside the nest, the mother digs them out.

The quiz

1. What is a "ghara", the object that gave the gharial its name?

• A fishing net
• A river boat
• A clay pot (correct)
• A temple drum

The male's snout bump looks like a clay pot called a ghara.

2. How far away can a male gharial's hiss be heard?

• About 5 m
• About 75 m (correct)
• About 20 km
• About 50 cm

His hollow nose bump lets him hiss loud enough to carry 75 m.

3. How does a gharial eat a fish?

• It chews it for a long time
• It shares it with its group
• It leaves it to soften on the bank
• It swallows it whole (correct)

The gharial does not chew; it gulps its prey down whole.

4. Why does a gharial leave the water?

• Only to bask and to nest (correct)
• To hunt rabbits at night
• To climb trees and rest
• To sleep in caves all winter

It is the most aquatic crocodilian and comes out only to bask and build nests.

5. What is special about gharial eggs?

• They are the smallest of all crocodilians
• They are the largest of all crocodilians (correct)
• They are laid in tree holes
• They float on the river

Each egg weighs about 160 g, more than any other crocodilian egg.

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