Crocodile Father Gives 100 Hatchlings a Piggyback Ride While Basking in Chambal River; Intimate Bonding with Baby Crocs Captured in a Stunning Photos

Indian photographer Dhritiman Mukherjee is always on the hunt for never-before-seen photos or images of wild animals. One of his recent shots features a crocodile father guarding a large swarm of his young while swimming in the river.

The wildlife photographer unexpectedly spotted the gharial, a member of the crocodile's family, giving a ride to more than 100 of his babies, which gives picking up the kids from school a different meaning. Mukherjee told PetaPixel that he hopes his photo could be used for a scientific goal, specifically for the conservation of those reptiles.

(Photo : Sirachai Arunrugstichai/Getty Images)
Baby crocodiles are being raised and displayed inside a small enclosure at Malai Farm, an animal farm and learning center on livestocks on February 02, 2022 in Phetchaburi, Thailand.

Capturing the Image of the Gharial

Mukherjee has been working as a photographer for 25 years and traveled to the National Chambal Sanctuary in India in 2017 to capture unique images of the wildlife, especially endangered gharial that is commonly found in the Chambal River in the sanctuary.

In an interview with the news outlet, Mukherjee said he had been patrolling the river for weeks when he came across the male gharial with its babies one morning. He clarified that the photo opportunity was not based purely on luck or serendipity but rather on his good connections to experts in the area.

According to Mukherjee, he has a very good network in the area, including local people, scientists, naturalists, and forest department officials, who gave him the information about the gharials. It was not the first time he had visited the area because he had been there a few times already. But now, it is evident that the population of gharials in the region has increased.

He also noted that the babies shown in the photos were all the offspring of the male crocodile but from different females. Crocodiles usually carry their young in their mouths, but that would be impossible with the narrow snout of gharials. Therefore, the fathers would carry the hatchlings on their heads and back to provide protection and close parental connection.

The public is advised not to approach them as the reptile can be very aggressive when anyone comes too close to the riverbank. The photo was taken using a 70-200mm camera lens from a safe distance to avoid confrontation. Due to its unique shot, the photo was chosen as one of the 100 highly commendable images in this year's  Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition.

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When Papa Croc Cares

Female crocodiles are often documented in caring for their young as they carry newly hatched offspring in their mouths to liberate them. But parental care in the crocodilian family is not exclusive to mothers.

According to The Washington Post, biologists in India have also documented father crocodiles doing the same without assistance from the mothers. They saw one day that a male crocodile was digging into a nest and picked up his hatchlings one by one and carried them toward the water while the mother was floating offshore, occasionally chasing away other females.

When the male encountered some unhatched eggs, he took them in his mouth and seemingly tried to crack them open until a baby croc crawled out. Biologists observed that the males of mugger crocodiles are especially attentive and produce two nests of eggs 40 days apart during the breeding season.

While the mother cares for the first batch, she will not be able to watch the second batch, and the experts believe it's when fathers take over.

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Check out more news and information on Crocodiles in Science Times.