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Photo : Cyril Rufus |
Diet
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| Adults |
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Fish (primary food source) |
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Small crustaceans (mud crabs) |
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| Juveniles |
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Insects, tadpoles, small fish, frogs |
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Gharials’ jaws are too thin and delicate to grab larger prey. |
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Gharials sweep their head side to side to detect prey, and sensory receptors called ISOs along their head may aid in detecting movement of prey |
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The many needle-like teeth along their long jaws are efficient at keeping a firm hold on slippery fish, caught in several ways: |
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Lying in wait for fish to swim by, and then catching the fish by quickly whipping their head |
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sideways and grabbing it in their jaws. |
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Herding fish with their body against the shore. |
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Stunning fish using their underwater jaw clap. |
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Gharials do not chew their prey– they swallow food whole. |
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In order to swallow, Gharials must hold their heads out of the water. A valve at the back of their throat, called the palatal valve, keeps water from entering their lungs while they are underwater. In order to swallow this valve must be opened. Therefore crocodiles must have their heads out of water or they will drown when the valve opens. |
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GHARIAL HELPFUL TO FISHERMEN ? |
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There is some evidence to suggest that, like the NIle Crocodile, gharials prefer to eat slower-moving, larger predatory fish, such as catfish. This would mean they are helpful to fisheries, since they are eating the predators that normally eat commercially valuable fish. Further study into the feeding ecology of gharials needs to be done to determine if this is indeed the case. If true, it could be important for improving gharials’ image with local fishermen. |
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