Crocodiles live how long

Reliable age records are more difficult to come by, and typically derive from captive animals which has problems see below.

The image on the left is Gomek, who died in February at the St. Augustine Alligator Farm. He was He was captured in Papua New Guinea as an adult, and his age at that time was unknown, although he grew less than a foot in the 20 years he remained in Florida. How is age measured? There is currently no reliable way of measuring crocodile age, although several techniques can be used to derive a reasonable guess.

Several techniques provide the most reliable information. The most used technique is to measure the lamellar growth rings. These rings occur in the bones and teeth of the crocodile. The bones and teeth grow one new ring each year , typically between the dry and wet seasons. In reality, the physical effects of ageing cause the death of crocs. As they age, one by one they start losing their deadly teeth. Some crocodiles will gradually start developing cataracts. The scientific term is crocodile shagreen , which is characterized by greyish-white opacities.

The usual species killers, such as habitat destruction and human intervention, are some of the other main culprits. The ferocious predators induce fear in herbivores and small mammals. The largest of the crocs will even attack and eat animals as large as wildebeest. However, desperate big cats, such as jaguars and leopards , will sometimes have their go at attacking a vulnerable crocodile. Huge serpents, like pythons and anacondas , will also take their chances against a croc when times are hard.

This puts the crocs lifespan in a good position. Without becoming prey, they have the chance of living a longer life. With the most acidic stomach of all animals, the croc can digest all parts of their meals, including the hooves and horns of an animal.

The evolved metabolism allows the croc to use up the entirety of the food it consumes. But, here on Earth, living with us, are a few species that exhibit Negligible Senescence.

Animals like these only die due to diseases, accidents or predators. In animals, sea urchins, lobsters, clams and hydras are some examples. Vertebrates like a few Tortoises, Turtles, Crocodiles, Alligators, Rougheye rock fish and Flounders have been not observed to have aged biologically. That is the reason we had a year old tortoise in the Kolkata zoo till the year Among trees, probably the best example for an individual would be one Methuselah tree , which has been living for years.

Its exact whereabouts are kept a secret to save it from us. On the other hand, a colony of a single tree has been estimated to be around 80, years old. It is also the heaviest known organism. Lolong briefly held the title of largest crocodile in captivity from the Guinness Book of World Records until he died in captivity in , at an estimated age of He died of pneumonia and cardiac arrest.

One of the deadliest crocodiles on this list and, possibly on the planet, Gustave eludes captivity and roams the waters of the Ruzizi River and Lake Tanganyika in the small African state of Burundi. Gustave is a reputed man eater who has been terrorizing local villagers since the s.

A documentary Capturing the Killer Croc , shows the attempts of Patrice Faye and other scientists to humanely capture and kill Gustave using a baited trap cage. Faye had spent two years investigating the crocodiles and its violent activities before setting out to capture Gustave on a two month deadline.

The attempt ultimately failed and the team was forced to leave the country due to political instability. For a time, Gustave was believed to be dead as he did not surface and attempt another attack in years. However, he was confirmed to be sighted again in , with rumours of sightings dated as recent as In March , an old crocodile by the name Hakuna died in the Blijdorp zoo in Rotterdam, Netherlands.

Hakuna was gifted to the zoo, along with a female crocodile named Matata who died in , by famous actress and singer Josephine Baker. Another violent man eater, this crocodile named Big Daddy , was captured in after he mauled five people in River Tana. He was so hostile that when he arrived in his new home in Mamba Village he ate 10 of his fellow crocodiles and was thus put into solitary confinement.