As if crocodiles and alligators were not terrifying enough, scientists have discovered that these ancient, sharp-toothed beasts are incredibly cunning. So clever that they use lures to trap and gobble unsuspecting birds.
The discovery in two crocodilian species — mugger crocodiles and American alligators — is the first report of tool use in reptiles, according to a study in the journal Ethology Ecology and Evolution.
Some birds, like egrets, actually choose to nest around crocodile and alligator hangouts because they offer some protection from tree-climbing predators like raccoons, snakes and monkeys. There's a blood price, however. Chicks and sometimes adult birds will become snacks for the crocodilians if they venture too close.
While on a research trip to Madras Crocodile Bank in Tamil Nadu, India, lead author Vladimir Dinets of the University of Tennessee noticed that mugger crocodiles seemed to be balancing twigs on their snouts.
“The crocodiles remained perfectly still for hours, and if they did move to change position, they did it in such a way that the sticks remained balanced on their snouts,” according to the paper.
Then, as an egret came close and leaned over to grab a stick, the crocodile suddenly lunged. The bird barely escaped with its life.
The study's two other co-authors noticed similar behavior over 13 years working at St. Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park in Florida.
After studying the habits of these reptiles at four sites in Louisiana for a year, the scientists confirmed that alligators and crocodiles do indeed use twigs to lure unsuspecting birds to their doom.
Here was the really strange part: The reptiles were covering their snouts with sticks only during spring nesting season, when demand for twigs was high and birds would grab every little woody scrap they could get their beaks on to build their nests.
