Vegetarian crocodiles once roamed the world
A lesson in not stereotyping on the basis of modern examples
COMPARED WITH mammals, living members of the crocodile clan have exceptionally boring dentition. From the slender-snouted gharials of India and the nocturnal caimans of South America to the saltwater behemoths of the South Pacific, crocodile teeth vary little in morphology. All are conical and pointed. Each tooth in an animal’s mouth is almost identical to its neighbours—as befits a group of that feed on a mixture of fish and the occasional careless beast that strays too close to the shore, or even into the water itself.
This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline “Vegetarian crocodiles”
From the June 29th 2019 edition
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