How does a mother get her hatchlings to the water?

She carries them gently in her mouth

Saltwater Crocodile

Crocodylus porosus

The saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) is the largest living reptile and the most widespread crocodilian, found from India and Sri Lanka through Southeast Asia to northern Australia and the Solomon Islands. Despite its name, it lives in tidal rivers, swamps and freshwater lagoons as well as along coasts, and it can ride ocean currents from one river to the next. Hunted until it was rarely seen in northern Australia, it has recovered strongly since it was protected in the 1970s.

Also known as Estuarine crocodile, Saltie, Sea-going crocodile

Saltwater crocodile abilities

16,414 N strongest bite ever measured
A saltie waits at the water’s edge with only its eyes and nostrils showing, then lunges or snaps sideways at animals that come to drink.
- Young crocodiles sit and wait in shallow water. Bigger ones approach slowly underwater, keeping almost nothing above the surface.
- It mostly hunts at night but will take a chance during the day too.
- One saltwater crocodile bit with 16,414 N, the highest bite force measured in any animal. Scientists estimate that the very biggest salties could bite even harder.
Highest bite forces measured
Saltwater crocodile16,414 N
American alligator9,452 N
Spotted hyena4,500 N
Crocodile and alligator values are the highest from one study of all crocodilian species; bigger animals bite harder.
Sources [1, 5, 7]
Tongue where its salt glands are
Glands in the tongue push out extra salt, so a saltie can spend time at sea without its body getting too salty.
- The glands ooze a concentrated salty liquid. Under the microscope they look like the salt glands of other reptiles.
- They were only discovered in 1981. Before that, scientists were puzzled that sea-going crocodiles seemed to have none.
- American alligators have no salt glands, which is why they can stand salt water only for short spells.
Sources [6, 8, 9]
400+ km swum home in 20 days
Salties make long trips by riding surface currents, travelling only when the water flows their way.
- Tagged crocodiles on long, one-way trips of more than 10 km a day set off only when the current was in their favour.
- Satellite tracks of crocodiles at sea followed the direction of the surface currents very closely.
- One male, flown by helicopter to the other side of Cape York (411 km away along the coast), swam more than 400 km back in 20 days.
- Strays have turned up on remote islands such as Fiji, which helps explain why the species is spread across so many islands.
Sources [1, 6, 11, 13]
Osteoderms bony plates in the skin
Bony plates set into the skin of its back, called osteoderms, give it a tough coat of armour.
- The plates are embedded in its thick skin, so the armour is part of the skin itself.
- The armour still lets it feel: even its body scales carry tiny touch organs.
- Big salties are often covered in mud and algae, which hides their colour.
Sources [1, 4, 6]
20–35 Hz ripples felt best
Thousands of tiny dots on its jaws are touch organs that feel ripples on the water.
- These integumentary sensory organs cover the jaws of all crocodilians: a Nile crocodile has about 9,000 and an American alligator about 4,000. True crocodiles, like the saltie, also have them on their body scales.
- They are more sensitive to touch than human fingertips and respond best to vibrations like those from small ripples.
- They help a crocodile tell when to bite and feel what it is holding in its jaws.
- This matters because crocodile eyes are badly out of focus underwater.
Sources [3, 4]
40–70 eggs in a nest
In the wet season a female scrapes plants and mud into a big mound near the water and lays her eggs inside.
- The mound can be up to 2.5 m long and 80 cm high, usually within 10 m of permanent water.
- She lays about 40–70 eggs, each about 8 cm long. Warmth from the rotting plants and the sun keeps them at about 31–32 °C.
- The nest temperature decides each baby’s sex: middle temperatures give mostly males, cooler and hotter ones mostly females.
- Floods are the biggest danger: eggs drown if the mound goes underwater. Mound nests and nest guarding are an ancient habit; scientists think the first crocodilians did the same.
Sources [1, 6, 7, 14, 15]
≈90 days in the egg before the first chirps
Babies start chirping inside their eggs when they are ready to hatch, and the calls bring their mother to dig them out.
- Experiments with Nile crocodiles showed that these calls tell both the brothers and sisters and the mother that it is hatching time.
- The mother opens the mound and may gently roll eggs in her mouth to help the babies out.
- Then she carries the hatchlings in her mouth to the water, where they stay together in a group under her watch for up to five weeks.
Sources [1, 7, 16, 17]
163 crocodiles temperature-tracked for 13 years
A crocodile can’t make its own body heat, so it warms up and cools down by choosing where to rest, such as basking on a bank.
- Scientists logged the body temperatures of 163 wild salties over 13 years. Most of the time their bodies matched the water.
- Bigger crocodiles adjusted their temperature the most: they warmed up more in winter and cooled down more in summer.
- A basking crocodile on a bank may look asleep. In Queensland it is against the law to stay within 10 m of a crocodile on land.
Sources [18, 19]

Tap a pin on the model or a part below.

8.8 cycles per degree at its sharpest
- The eyes sit high on top of the head, so a crocodile can watch the bank while the rest of it stays underwater.
- Its sharpest vision runs along a horizontal stripe across the back of the eye, called a foveal streak.
- It has five kinds of light-sensing cells, including three kinds of single cones, so it can probably see colours.
- In air its eyes focus well on distant things, but underwater they are badly out of focus.
Sources [1, 2, 3]
- The saltwater crocodile has a broad, heavy snout compared with many other crocodiles.
- Its nostrils sit on top of the snout tip, so it can breathe with almost all of its body hidden.
- The very tip of the jaws carries some of the most sensitive touch spots on its whole body.
Sources [1, 4]
16,414 N highest bite force ever measured
- Scientists who tested all 23 crocodilian species found that crocodilians have the strongest bites and tooth pressures of any living animals.
- One saltwater crocodile bit with 16,414 N, the highest bite force measured in any animal and more than 3½ times a spotted hyena’s 4,500 N.
- The jaws are dotted with tiny touch organs that help it decide when to bite and feel what it is holding.
Sources [4, 5]
64–68 teeth
- A saltwater crocodile has 64–68 teeth in total.
- Its tongue and skull bones don’t move much, so it tosses food around in its mouth to line it up for swallowing.
- Small prey is swallowed whole. With bigger food it shakes its head or rolls in the water to break off a piece it can swallow.
Sources [1, 6, 7]
1981 year the glands were discovered
- For a long time scientists were puzzled that sea-going crocodiles seemed to have no salt glands.
- In 1981 Australian researchers found them in the tongue: small glands that ooze out a concentrated salty liquid.
- American alligators have no salt glands and can stand salt water only for short spells.
Sources [8, 9]
- Like birds and mammals, a crocodile has a heart with four chambers.
- Unlike them, it can send blood around the lungs instead of through them, for example during a long dive.
- It does this with an extra aorta, a small hole linking its two aortas (the foramen of Panizza) and small knobs of tissue in the passage to the lungs that help control the flow.
Sources [10]
- Its thick skin has bony plates called osteoderms set into it.
- Even its body scales carry tiny touch organs, something only true crocodiles and gharials have.
- Adults range from golden tan to grey or almost black, with darker mottling, and big ones are often coated in mud and algae.
Sources [1, 4, 6, 7]
- A long, muscular tail and a streamlined body make it a powerful swimmer.
- On long journeys it travels at the surface and only when the current flows its way.
- When the current turns against it, it waits on the river bottom or climbs out on the bank.
Sources [1, 11]
- It has short legs and clawed, webbed feet.
- It leaves the water to bask, to nest and sometimes to feed on food it finds on land.
- Crocodilians can use almost every kind of walking and running step that mammals use, and some kinds of crocodile can even bound.
Sources [1, 12]

Real saltwater crocodiles

Photos from Wikimedia Commons. Some of them can change the 3D model.

In the wild on the Daintree River, Queensland, AustraliaPhoto: JJ Harrison, CC BY 3.0
Adult maleHeavy and broad-headed. An average male is 3–4 m long and weighs 200–300 kg, and the biggest pass 1,000 kg.Mature at about 3.3 m and 16–17 years oldFrederick, a big saltwater crocodile at Wilhelma zoo, Stuttgart. Photo: H. Zell, CC BY-SA 3.0
Adult femaleMuch smaller and slimmer than a male. Females rarely grow past 3.5 m or 150 kg; the largest reliably measured was 4 m.Can breed from about 2.3 m and 12 years oldA female at Wilhelma zoo, Stuttgart. Photo: H. Zell, CC BY-SA 3.0
HatchlingBrighter and boldly banded. The bands fade as it grows but never disappear completely.Eats insects, crabs, prawns and shrimpsA hatchling saltwater crocodile. Photo: Richard.Fisher, CC BY 2.0
Salties hatching at a wildlife park display, SydneyPhoto: grace_kat, CC BY-SA 2.0
Sunbathing on a riverbank near Karamjal in the SundarbansPhoto: Fabian Roudra Baroi, CC BY-SA 4.0
A juvenile in the Rock Islands of Palau, in the western PacificPhoto: Charles J. Sharp, CC BY-SA 4.0
A portrait on a river in Kakadu National ParkPhoto: Jurie.vw, CC BY-SA 4.0
An eye up close, Wilhelma zoo, StuttgartPhoto: H. Zell, CC BY-SA 3.0
A tail at Yellow Water, Kakadu National ParkPhoto: Pc-espe, CC BY-SA 3.0

Saltwater crocodile by the numbers

Measured by scientists, museums and wildlife agencies, with comparisons you can picture.

Length: 3–4 m; average adult male; record males over 6 m, females rarely over 3.5 m⁠[7, 1]
Weight: 200–300 kg; average adult male; the biggest pass 1,000 kg⁠[7, 6]
Bite force: 16,414 N; highest bite force measured in any animal; Saltwater crocodile16,414 NSpotted hyena4,500 N; About 3½ times a spotted hyena’s bite⁠[5]
Teeth: 64–68; in its upper and lower jaws together⁠[6]
Eggs: 40–70; in one mound nest, each about 8 cm long⁠[7, 1]
Incubation: ≈90 days; faster in a warmer nest: about 80 days at 32 °C⁠[7, 6]
Mum’s care: up to 5 weeks; hatchlings stay in a group near their mother⁠[7]
Coastal trip: 400+ km; in 20 days, by a male swimming home⁠[13]
Grown up at: 12–17 years; females about 12, males about 16–17⁠[7, 6]
Northern Australia: 100,000+; up from a few thousand 50 years ago⁠[20]

Saltwater crocodile myths and facts

Crocodiles attract tall tales. Here is what the evidence says.

0 of 8 answered

“Crocodiles haven’t changed since the time of the dinosaurs.”
“Saltwater crocodiles live only in salt water.”
“Crocodiles see perfectly underwater.”
“Saltwater crocodiles can travel along coasts and across the sea.”
“Baby crocodiles call from inside their eggs.”
“A mother crocodile with babies in her mouth is eating them.”
“The temperature of the nest decides whether a baby crocodile is a boy or a girl.”
“Crocodiles swallow stones to help them digest food and dive deeper.”

Saltwater crocodile records

Superlatives and record holders, each checked against its source.

Largest living reptile
6+ m
Saltwater crocodile
males over 5 m are very rare; the biggest pass 1,000 kg⁠[1, 11, 6]
Strongest bite ever measured
16,414 N
Saltwater crocodile
the highest bite force measured in any animal⁠[5]
Largest crocodile in captivity
6.17 m
Lolong, Philippines
confirmed by Guinness World Records in 2012⁠[23]
Largest reliably measured in the wild
≥6.15 m
Mary River, Northern Territory (1974)
a 100 cm skull hints that even bigger ones have lived⁠[1]
Longest homeward trip tracked
400+ km
Male moved across Cape York
in 20 days, the longest homing trip reported for a crocodilian at the time⁠[13]
Widest range of any crocodilian
India to the Solomon Islands
Saltwater crocodile
from Sri Lanka through Southeast Asia to northern Australia⁠[24, 1]

The life of a saltwater crocodile

From a chirping egg to a giant of the river, over many years.

Wet season
A mound by the water
Courtship starts around October. From December to April the female builds a mound of plants and mud, usually within 10 m of permanent water.⁠[7]
Laying
Around 50 eggs
She lays about 40–70 hard-shelled eggs, each about 8 cm long, and often guards it from a muddy wallow beside it.⁠[7, 1]
About 90 days
Warm eggs
Warmth from rotting plants and the sun incubates the eggs. Their temperature decides whether each baby becomes male or female.⁠[7, 1, 14]
Hatching
Chirps from the nest
Ready-to-hatch babies chirp inside their eggs. Their mother digs them out and carries them in her mouth to the water.⁠[7, 1]
First weeks
A crèche
The hatchlings stay together near their mother for up to five weeks, then spread out. They catch insects, crabs, prawns and shrimps.⁠[7]
Young years
Growing up
Small crocodiles eat small prey often. Their stripes slowly fade. Bigger ones eat less often but take larger animals.⁠[1, 6]
Teenage years
Moving out
As they grow, young crocodiles are pushed out of the best rivers by big, territorial adults. Some travel along the coast to find a new home.⁠[6]
About 12–17 years
Grown up
Females can breed at about 12 years and 2.3 m long, males at about 16–17 years and 3.3 m.⁠[7, 6]

Be Crocwise: staying safe around saltwater crocodiles

Saltwater crocodiles are large predators and can be found in rivers, beaches and the sea across northern Australia and Asia. These calm, simple habits keep people safe. They follow the Queensland Government’s Be Crocwise advice.

5 m+
from the water’s edge
Stay well back from the water’s edge, because crocodiles can reach people and animals standing there. Keep away from muddy slides on banks.⁠[25]
Signs
take them seriously
Obey crocodile warning signs. Crocodiles move around a lot, especially after heavy rain and floods, and can travel hundreds of kilometres.⁠[25]
No swimming
where crocs live
Never swim where crocodiles live, even if you can’t see one.⁠[25]
Never feed
and bin your scraps
Never feed crocodiles. Take fish scraps, bait and leftovers home or put them in a bin. Fed crocodiles hang around boat ramps and campsites, and in Queensland feeding or leaving scraps is an offence.⁠[25, 19]
10 m
from a croc on land
Don’t go near a crocodile basking on a bank or sandbar. In Queensland it is an offence to stay within 10 m of one.⁠[19]
Dusk to dawn
take extra care
Be extra careful at night, dusk and dawn. Adults should watch children near water, and pets should stay on a lead away from the edge.⁠[25]

If you see a crocodile somewhere people swim, fish or camp, move away calmly, tell an adult and report it to the local wildlife authority.

Saltwater crocodile vs Nile crocodile vs American alligator

Three big crocodilians, three very different homes.

Saltwater crocodile vs Nile crocodile vs American alligator
	Saltwater crocodile	Nile crocodile	American alligator
Scientific name⁠[26, 27]	Crocodylus porosus	Crocodylus niloticus	Alligator mississippiensis
Where it lives⁠[1, 28, 9]	India and Sri Lanka to Southeast Asia, northern Australia and the Solomon Islands	Lakes, rivers and swamps in 26 African countries	Southeastern United States
Typical adult male⁠[7, 28, 9]	3–4 m, 200–300 kg	3.5–5 m, 225–750 kg	about 3.4 m
Biggest⁠[1, 6, 28, 9]	over 6 m and 1,000 kg	over 6.1 m and 1,000 kg recorded	nearly 454 kg
Salt water⁠[8, 11, 28, 9]	Salt glands in the tongue; travels at sea	Mostly fresh water, rarely the sea	No salt glands; salt water only briefly
Touch dots (ISOs)⁠[4]	On the jaws and body scales	About 9,000, on the jaws and body scales	About 4,000, on the jaws only
Highest bite force measured⁠[5]	16,414 N	3,172 N (only two smaller animals tested)	9,452 N
IUCN Red List⁠[26, 27]	Least Concern	Least Concern	Least Concern

Bite forces are the highest values from one study that tested all crocodilian species; bigger animals bite harder.

Are saltwater crocodiles endangered?

Not worldwide. They were hunted until they were rarely seen in northern Australia, but protection brought them back, one of the great wildlife recoveries.

IUCN Red List

Least Concern (LC)

Widespread, and numerous in northern Australia and Papua New Guinea, but depleted in parts of Asia. In northern Australia the population has grown from a few thousand to more than 100,000 in about 50 years.⁠[26, 1, 6, 20]

IUCN Red List: Least Concern

Threats

Hunting for skins (in the past)
In the Northern Territory, 26 years of heavy commercial hunting left wild saltwater crocodiles rarely seen by 1971.⁠[29]
Conflict with people
As crocodile numbers grow, they meet people more often, so safety education and management matter.⁠[1, 19]
Flooded nests
Floods are the main cause of egg losses, killing eggs in many nests each year.⁠[6]
Depleted in parts of Asia
Outside Australia and Papua New Guinea, many populations are much smaller than they once were.⁠[6]

What’s helping

Legal protection1971
The Northern Territory protected saltwater crocodiles in 1971, and populations in tidal rivers have since recovered to near their natural limit.⁠[29]
Night-time countssince 1975
Scientists have counted crocodiles by spotlight along the same rivers since 1975, which shows how the recovery happened.⁠[29]
Careful egg harvest
The recovery continued even with a managed harvest of wild eggs.⁠[29]
Be Crocwise education
Campaigns teach people how to live safely alongside crocodiles, and laws stop people feeding them.⁠[25, 19]

Saltwater crocodile quiz

Twelve questions. Every answer is somewhere on this page.

Question 1 of 12Score 0

Where are a saltwater crocodile’s salt glands?

Saltwater Crocodile field notes

Diet, food web, safety and badges from the Snappit field guide.

Diet & Feeding

They are mighty hunters, eating everything from fish and birds to large mammals!

Primary Foods

fish
birds
wild pigs
water buffalo
kangaroos
crabs
Foraging Method: Ambush

Ecological connections

Water BuffaloHunts
A primary prey for large adult crocodiles.
Wild BoarHunts
Often ambushed near water sources.
Great EgretHunts
Eats birds that come to the water's edge.
BarramundiEats
A common fish species in their diet.

Safety

Danger 5/5 · Extreme

Saltwater crocodiles are dangerous. Stay more than 5 m back from the water’s edge, obey warning signs and never swim where crocodiles live. Never feed them. If you see one, move away calmly and tell an adult.

Traits

Collections

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Crocodylia
Family: Crocodylidae
Genus: Crocodylus

Sources for these saltwater crocodile facts

31 studies and references · checked Oct 16, 2026

Frequently Asked Questions

How to identify Saltwater Crocodile?

Compare scales, body proportions, legs, tail and shell, if there is one. Many reptiles change their look with age, temperature or breeding condition. Reptile Identifier: upload a photo and compare the visible details.

How long is Saltwater Crocodile?

300-617 cm

How much does Saltwater Crocodile weigh?

200-1000 kg

How long does Saltwater Crocodile live?

70-100 years

What does Saltwater Crocodile eat?

They are mighty hunters, eating everything from fish and birds to large mammals!

Where is Saltwater Crocodile usually found?

Coastal areas, rivers, and swamps

How does Saltwater Crocodile hunt?

Ambush

How many eggs does Saltwater Crocodile lay?

40-70

How big can a saltwater crocodile get?

An average adult male is 3–4 m long and weighs 200–300 kg. A few males pass 6 m and 1,000 kg: the largest reliably measured wild one was at least 6.15 m, and Lolong in the Philippines measured 6.17 m. Females rarely grow past 3.5 m.

How strong is a saltwater crocodile’s bite?

In a study of all crocodilian species, one saltwater crocodile bit with 16,414 N, the highest bite force measured in any animal. That is about 3½ times the bite of a spotted hyena.

Can saltwater crocodiles live in fresh water?

Yes. Despite the name, they live in freshwater lagoons, rivers and swamps up to hundreds of kilometres inland, as well as in tidal rivers, along beaches and around offshore islands.

How do saltwater crocodiles get rid of salt?

Glands in their tongue push out a concentrated salty liquid. American alligators lack these glands and can stand salt water only for short spells.

How long can a saltwater crocodile hold its breath?

In a lab study, young salties stayed under for up to about 9 minutes when scared and spent about 37 minutes of every hour underwater in 28 °C water, coming up for 2–3 minutes between dives. Warmer water makes dives shorter. Wild freshwater crocodiles have made dives of more than 40 minutes, but we found no reliable measurement of the longest dive by an adult saltie.

How many eggs does a saltwater crocodile lay?

Usually about 40–70, around 50 on average, in a mound of plants and mud near the water. They hatch after about 90 days, and the nest temperature decides whether each baby is male or female.

Are saltwater crocodiles endangered?

No. The IUCN Red List lists them as Least Concern. They were heavily hunted in the past, but in northern Australia they have grown from a few thousand to more than 100,000 since protection began in the 1970s.

How do you stay safe in crocodile country?

Be Crocwise: stay more than 5 m back from the water’s edge, obey warning signs, never swim where crocodiles live, never feed them, bin your food scraps and take extra care at night, dusk and dawn.