Reptiles · Crocodilia · Gavialidae
Gavialis gangeticus
At extremely high risk of imminent extinction in the wild.
It is the only crocodilian with a marked difference between the sexes in snout shape: from about 15 years old males grow a bulbous knob on the tip called a "ghara".
Weight
150 kg – 250 kg
Size
3.5 m – 6 m
Life expectancy
50 years
Diet
Carnivore
Feeds mainly on other animals.
Activity
Diurnal
Active mainly during the day.
Social structure
Solitary
Lives and hunts alone, joining others only to breed.
Sighting difficulty
Very hard
AI-generated images: illustrations, not photographs.
Sources consulted: Dimensions.com; Animal Diversity Web; AnAge (genomics.senescence.info); SeaWorld; National Geographic; Nature Table; Animalia.bio; Wikipedia (Gharial); SDZWA Library Fact Sheet
The pins mark the parks where its presence is documented.
Parks and dive sites where this species has been documented.
Other species in the catalogue with the most in common with Gharial — same habitat, park, country, tags or family.
The gharial is classified as critically endangered. Organisations such as the IUCN, WWF and the Wildlife Conservation Society work specifically on its conservation and that of its habitat; looking into their programmes is a good starting point if you want to get involved.
It's documented in 4 protected areas — one reason why protecting these places matters for its conservation.
Based on what we already know about gharial.
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