Why is this animal unusual?
That needle-thin snout is a fish trap. It slices sideways through the water with almost no resistance and snaps shut on a fish with about 110 interlocking teeth.
Why does it look like that?
Adult males grow a round knob on the tip of the snout. It’s called a ghara, after an Indian clay pot, and it gave the animal its name.
Strangest biological feature
The ghara. Males use it to blow bubbles and make a loud buzzing sound that attracts females.
Why is it strange?
A gharial’s legs are too weak to lift its body on land. It can only push itself along on its belly.
Interesting behavioral facts
After the eggs hatch, the father guards the babies. One male was photographed carrying more than a hundred hatchlings on his back.
Records held
It lays the largest eggs of any crocodilian.
