Wildlifeof Bhutan
Gharial
Crocodiles & False Gharial
Photo: Fábio Olmos · CC-BY (May be cropped or resized)
Gavialis gangeticus
Basic stats
Diet
Fish
Habitat
Rivers; leaves the water only to bask and nest on moist sandbanks
Range
Locally extinct in Bhutan and Myanmar; small populations remain in India and Nepal
Clutch size
20–95 eggs
Size
Females 2.6–4.5m; males 3–6m
The gharial is among the longest of all living crocodilians, with mature females 2.6 to 4.5m long and males 3 to 6m. It is the most thoroughly aquatic crocodilian, with a long, narrow snout and 110 sharp, interlocking teeth suited to catching fish. Adult males have a boss at the tip of the snout like an earthenware pot called a ghara, which gives the animal its name (Wikipedia, general species account).
The account opened states that it is locally extinct in Bhutan and Myanmar, so it can no longer be seen in Bhutan, although the Reptile Database still lists Bhutan in its range. Captive-bred gharials have been released in India and Nepal since the early 1980s. Females gather in spring to dig nests on sandbanks and lay 20 to 95 eggs.
Quick answers
- What does the Gharial eat?
- Fish
- What habitat does the Gharial live in?
- Rivers; leaves the water only to bask and nest on moist sandbanks
- Where is the Gharial found?
- Locally extinct in Bhutan and Myanmar; small populations remain in India and Nepal
- How many eggs does the Gharial lay?
- 20–95 eggs
- How big is the Gharial?
- Females 2.6–4.5m; males 3–6m