"Alligators and crocodiles are the largest reptile hunters who are still alive today and our study illustrates one key to their survival," said Paul M. Gignac. The study, led by Gregory Erickson of Florida State University, and measures the strength of the bite and tooth pressure of of 23 living crocodilian species through an unprecedented bite test.
Erickson and colleagues did physically measure the bites of several 17-foot (5.2-meter) saltwater crocs—as well as Nile crocodiles, alligators, caimans, gharials, and other crocs, some for the first time ever.
The team spent countless hours wrestling with the reptiles at Florida's St. Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park and getting them to bite a force transducer—a "very expensive, very durable, waterproof bathroom scale that's padded with leather."
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| Greg Erickson gauges the bite of an American alligator during tests of all living crocodilian species. (Picture from: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/) |
For every croc species, the transducer registered impressive power, suggesting that a big bite is at the heart of what it means to be a crocodilian, according to Erickson.
"That's why I think they've been so successful," he said. "They seized on a remarkable design for producing bite force and pressure to occupy ecological niches on the water's edge for 85 million years, and no one else evolved that could wrest those niches from them.
Among the studied crocodile, saltwater crocodile species measuring 17 feet (about 5 meters) in first place as the biggest bite of the reptile measuring 3,700 pounds (1.85 tons).
In a publication in the journal PLoS One, the researchers wrote their research results demonstrate the ability of animals to survive from the past as well as provide insight into the evolution of the forming ability of the animal. *** [REUTERS | NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC | SRI | PIKIRAN RAKYAT 12042012]
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