Reach Out and Touch ... a Crocodile?!!

The old story from Heroditus was that there is a tiny bird that may, with impunity, climb aboard a crocodile -- even a singularly snarly one, such as the salt water variety -- and take a ride.

The fable holds that crocodiles will actually open their mouths and allow the little bird to fly in and "pick their teeth" of food bits, insects, and to also remove nettlesome leeches.

To many modern zoologists, however the story is without proof and likely not true.

So what's going on? Am I just a born skeptic? Perhaps I am, but that doesn't mean there isn't something in this compelling relationship. Birds of various species are often found feeding in close proximity to crocodiles, and immobile crocodiles basking on the bank in the sun are rarely if ever concerned about birds wandering between them, standing on their back, or straying close to their jaws. Birds are opportunists too, and they will feed on flies and other insects on and around crocodiles. It may even appear that they are removing flies from the crocodile's jaws on occasion. But extrapolating this into a mutual relationship between crocodile and bird is going a bit far. Crocodiles hardly benefit from the presence of the birds, and yet they tolerate their presence because it's just not worth chasing them. Crocodiles aren't always in the mood for feeding, and they're smart enough to let difficult to catch prey like alert birds pass them by.

The quoted Australian zoologist, Adam Britton, maintains this interesting website where he and his wife Erin chronicle their work on crocodile conservation.

Now, crocs have been around for a long, long time . . . a lot longer than mankind. Why, back in the old days, according to Adam Britton, they apparently used to have dinosaurs for breakfast!

Anyway, were the ancient Greek tale of the croc and the bird true, it would probably be classified as a life process known as facultative symbiosis -- or, a mutual and long-term interaction between different biological species, in which the relationship is beneficial to each, but not essential for the survival of either of the organisms.

Suffice it to say, however, that we can confidently conclude -- to a moral certainly -- that there is no such relationship between a certain salt water crocodile named "Fatso," and an Australian man, named Michael Newman, who, in a recent state of inebriation, foolishly decided to climb in the crocodile cage in a nearby zoo to sit on the back of a 16-footer that was residing therein.










The BBC video of the interview with Mr. Newman cannot be embedded here, but it is worth going to the link and both watching and listening to the man tell his story as he is being wheeled out of the hospital. Unbelievable.

Featuring what can be described as a cross between a high-and-tight Australian version of a Beckham and a "Mohawk" hair do, Michael Newman describes how unexpectedly fast the croc turned out to be in spite of it's large size. And at one point, he actually says, "when it grabbed me I thought, I'm in trouble here - I'm not coming out of here . . . "

Well yeah!














Fortunately, for Newman, it is winter time down under, and according to the zoo keeper, "Fatso" was perhaps a bit sluggish that day. He only took a few chunks out of the guy's leg, and then let him go. That was probably fortunate for Fatso" as well. Had he killed the guy -- which he could have quite easily done if he had been a bit hungrier or otherwise excitable -- the officials would have no doubt been obliged to "put down" the beast.

The result? Yet another complete nitwit manages to get his 15 minutes of fame!

Also according to the BBC story,

"An average of two people are killed each year in Australia by aggressive saltwater crocodiles, which can grow up to 7m (23 ft) long and weigh more than a tonne."