Mugger Crocodile: a two-minute wildlife lesson

Crocodiles and Big Reptiles · day 3 of 7

Five facts

1. Muggers balance sticks on their heads to fool birds hunting for nest material. They are among the first reptiles seen using tools.
2. When it gets too hot or too cold, a mugger hides in a burrow it digs itself, up to 6 m deep, with a room at the end wide enough to turn around.
3. In the hot dry season, when ponds shrink, muggers set off across land at night to find a better wetland.
4. It is only a medium-sized crocodile, but no living crocodile has a broader snout.
5. Mugger dads have been seen helping to dig and guard the nest. Then mother and father watch over their young for up to a year.

The quiz

1. What do muggers balance on their heads to lure birds?

• Small fish
• Sticks (correct)
• Feathers
• Pebbles

Birds looking for nest material come for the sticks and branches.

2. Why does a mugger dig a burrow?

• To store fish for later
• To catch passing birds
• To dry out its skin
• To escape very hot or cold weather (correct)

Burrows shelter it from extreme temperatures.

3. What do muggers do on nights in the hot dry season?

• Walk over land to find wetlands (correct)
• Climb trees to sleep
• Swim out to the open sea
• Bury themselves in snow

They travel overland at night to reach better water.

4. What is special about the mugger's snout?

• It is the narrowest of all crocodiles
• It has no teeth
• It is the broadest of any living crocodile (correct)
• It ends in a pot-shaped bump

Medium-sized overall, the mugger has the broadest snout of living crocodiles.

5. How long do mugger parents protect their young?

• One day
• Up to a year (correct)
• Only until the eggs hatch
• About ten years

Both the mother and the father guard the young for up to one year.

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