Our Crocodile Swamp exhibit is home to one Sunda gharial, an 18-year-old female named Lima.
Sunda gharials, also known as tomistoma, are found in a variety of habitats throughout their range of Southeast Asia, including lowland freshwater swamp forests, flooded forests, peat swamps, lakes and blackwater streams and rivers.
This species is an opportunistic carnivore that eats a varied diet of fish, amphibians, insects, shrimp, small deer and small monkeys.
Interesting facts!
- One of the largest crocodilians, Sunda gharials have been reported at lengths of over 5 metres!
- They are well adapted to life in water – their eyes and nostrils are positioned high on their heads allowing them to lurk unseen in their swamp home.
- Their long, narrow snout containing 76 to 84 teeth is ideal for catching small fish. They sweep their head sideways with little water resistance to their thin snout, snapping the fish out of the water.
- They have the largest known egg of any crocodile species, measuring around 10cm. Females appear to make mounds where they will lay 20 to 30 eggs which will hatch after 3 months. There is no direct evidence of hatchlings receiving parental care.
- Crocodiles are unable to sweat and instead lose extra heat by lying with their mouths open. On really hot days, you might see our crocodiles doing this!
Conservation
This species used to be found in Thailand, but has been extinct there since 1970. There is estimated to be less than 2,500 individuals remaining in the wild, but data is unclear. Threats include habitat loss due to farming and illegal logging, dams, drowning in fishing nets, overfishing and poaching.
Our gharials are part of the European Studbook for the species.