Deaths of crocodile attacks on humans. Crocodile attacks on people. Which crocodiles and alligators are dangerous

This misconception is replicated not only by guides, but also by various tourist sites. I quote one of them: “... the Chao Phraya River is still flowing for itself - muddy, with yellow water, very wide. Crocodiles in this river are not rare at all, on the contrary. According to statistics, up to 20 people die from their teeth every year in Bangkok.

Scary? Will you now ride river trams along the Chao Phraya River? Do not be afraid. This is outright bullshit.

Who came up with all this, I don't know. There are no such statistics in nature. Perhaps one of the Russian tourists or guides, being in a state of light (or medium) alcohol intoxication, saw a two-meter monitor lizard in the Chauphraya River, mistook it for a crocodile and away we go. Rumors spread quickly and grow with new details as they spread. And now, referring to the statistics, you can scare tourists: “In a year in Bangkok, crocodiles eat twenty people!”

Once again, there are no such statistics. Or it is only in the inflamed imagination of the one who came up with it. Crocodiles do not eat people in Bangkok, on the contrary, people in Bangkok eat crocodiles in restaurants.

I must say that it is impossible to find reliable data on the Russian-language Internet about how many people a year eat crocodiles around the world. A lot of yellowish information about man-eating crocodiles in the spirit of horror films (“Crocodile Gustav ate 300 people in Burundi”, “In Uganda, a crocodile destroyed a third of a fishing village”). But there is no scientific evidence at all.

At the same time, such data is available on the English-speaking Internet. And you can check them out. And find out that the most attacks of crocodiles on people are in Africa, where the evil and terrible Nile crocodile rampages.

But strangely enough, the much larger combed crocodile (it is he who lives in Southeast Asia) is responsible for only 20-30 attacks on people a year. And this is throughout its habitat from India to Australia. Each such attack is recorded. But for some reason, there are no residents of Bangkok eaten by crocodiles in these statistics at all.

I note that sometimes crocodiles fall into the Chao Phraya River. This happens when they run away from the farms where they are bred. Such cases are periodically recorded during the rainy season, when crocodile farms are flooded. The flood of 2011 was especially memorable in this regard. 120 saltwater crocodiles from a farm in Nonthaburi province have escaped to freedom. Their attacks on children were recorded. The fugitives were caught by the military, professional crocodile hunters and detachments of volunteers. The reptiles that escaped to freedom were returned to their place.

I summarize. Rumors that crocodiles live in the Chao Phraya River in Bangkok, eating 20 people a year, are a delusion replicated by illiterate guides and authors of Internet sites. Swimming in this river, however, is not recommended. But not because terrible predators live in it - combed crocodiles. Because the water is very polluted.

Image copyright getty

Alligators are dangerous predators and they do attack people. However, as the observer found out, this rarely ends in the death of a person.

On June 15, 2016, a two-year-old boy was dragged underwater by an alligator in Orlando, Florida.

Approximately 18 hours later, the boy's body "almost undamaged" was found in the water near the scene.

At a press conference, Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings said this was the first such incident in the region.

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After the tragedy, many began to think about how dangerous alligators are and whether it is worth visiting the places where they live.

We asked experts in the field to help assess the possible risks.

There are only two types of alligators: the Chinese alligator, which usually does not exceed 1.5 meters in length, and the American alligator, which can be much longer.

It is logical to assume that alligators can live in any body of water in Florida

We don't know the size of the alligator that attacked a child in Florida. According to eyewitnesses, it could be from 1.2 to 2 meters in length, that is, relatively small.

The largest American alligator was discovered in Alabama in 2014. Its length was almost 4.5 meters.

Florida is home to a huge number of alligators. Thanks to the conservation program, their number has reached one million.

American alligators live in all 67 counties of Florida, as well as in other states - Louisiana, Mississippi and North Carolina.

Ecologist Lucas Nell of the University of Georgia in Athens, USA, has been observing alligators for many years. According to him, it is logical to assume that alligators can live in any body of water in Florida.

Indeed, these predators are found in most swamps and rivers.

But, despite their myriad of them, they very rarely attack people.

Lucas Nell explains that alligators are afraid of people. "They have been hunted since the arrival of Europeans in America, and they were on the verge of extinction," he says.

In 2010, a study was conducted of all alligator attacks - from 1928 to 2009.

It turned out that over such a long period in the United States, only 24 people died from alligator teeth, and most of them were in Florida.

There are only 0.06 attacks per 100,000 people per year

Only a few fatal cases have been recorded when the alligator tried to eat the victim.

At the same time, “it is not known whether an attack took place: a person could first drown, and only then get into the teeth of a predator,” says author Rick Langley of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.

During this period, Langley counted 567 "dangerous encounters" with predators, as a result of which people received bites.

About 260 victims needed serious medical attention, while the rest escaped with minor injuries.

However, taking into account the total number of inhabitants in such a densely populated county with alligators, it turns out that there are only 0.06 attacks per 100,000 people per year. This is surprisingly low.

Experts from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Crocodile Study Group note that out of twenty-three species of crocodiles, only eight are prone to unprovoked attacks on humans.

These aggressive species also include American alligators (which belong to the order of crocodiles, but differ in appearance - Ed.).

Alligators are often less dangerous than crocodiles because they are more selective about their prey.

However, according to the IUCN, American alligator attacks are only 6% fatal.

Thus, the risk of dying from alligator teeth is very low, especially when compared to the bloodthirsty Nile crocodile (63%) and the combed crocodile (25-50%).

According to a database called CrocBITE, which records almost all cases of crocodile attacks in the world, about 1,000 people become their victims every year, with the vast majority of these deaths occurring in Africa.

Alligators are often less dangerous than crocodiles because they are more selective about their prey.

Simon Pooley, a researcher at Burbeck College at the University of London, who works with the IUCN's Crocodile Research Group, says crocodiles eat anything that moves, including large mammals.

Humans are encroaching on the natural habitat of alligators, and therefore the paths of these two species of living creatures will inevitably cross.

Alligators, on the other hand, rarely attack humans, as they feed mainly on fish, birds, other reptiles, and small mammals.

Unfortunately, often children are about the same size as small mammals, and therefore can become prey to the alligator.

Nevertheless, an alligator attack on a child is a rather rare case. As of 2010, attacks on children account for only 13.1%.

At the same time, Langley believes that alligator attacks could increase as "both the population and the size of the alligator population are growing."

In many coastal areas, people encroach on the natural habitat of alligators, and therefore the paths of these two species of living creatures inevitably cross.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission receives about 16,000 alligator complaints each year.

To coexist with large and dangerous predators, we must understand their behavior.

Its employees can catch an alligator that causes a nuisance to the local population if it exceeds 1.2 meters in size and "poses a threat to people, pets or property."

Smaller alligators are content with small prey and are not dangerous unless a person provokes them.

In 2015, the Commission staff caught 7513 alligators. According to a 2014 report, 66% of nuisance alligators have been eradicated "by lethal means".

Small alligators, as a rule, are simply taken out to another place.

Both Bullet and Nell are confident that these attacks are easy to prevent. But this means that you need to clearly understand all the risks and follow the simple rules developed by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Nell is convinced that people can live safely around alligators if they use common sense.

"In order to coexist with large and dangerous predators, we must understand their behavior and be extremely vigilant when in close proximity to them," Pooley says.

Everyone should know the rules, especially visitors and tourists. This means giving people as much information as possible.

"It seems to me that people just don't know how widespread alligators are in this area, especially now," says Pooley. "Alligators are especially active at this time of the year."

• Read in English on the website

FROMshark attack fucks,nowcooler than those hovering around the much more dangerous predators, crocodiles.M Waiting for those, the harm from them is much more than from sharks. And yes, they look worse. African guide Hendrik Coetzee, who led a kayak expedition to the Congo, was recently eaten by a crocodile in front of two terrified tourists.

A crocodile attacked Coetzee on a river in the Congo. After the attack and the terrible death of the guide, two stunned American tourists were transported to the nearest city. No remains of 35-year-old Hendrik Coetzee, who lived in Uganda, have been found. Apparently, the crocodile swallowed the guide whole, without a trace, and did not even choke. Reports of this incident are as terrible as they are hopeless: according to experts, if a shark attack can be somehow fought off, then it is much more difficult to escape from a swift attack of a crocodile. This is confirmed by statistics.

In the world, 15 people become victims of sharks every year. 200 people die from meeting with hippos, 250 from elephants, 1250 die from bee stings, meeting with crocodiles ends tragically for 2500 people. It is easy to calculate that crocodiles are 168 times more dangerous than sharks! By the way, in fact, the most sinister killers are mosquitoes - as many as two million people die from their bites. But then mosquitoes ... Here are just a few cases of crocodile robbery, which the press has been talking about only recently.

At the end of August, a small African plane crashed in the Republic of the Congo while on a regular flight from the capital of the Congo, Kinshasa, to Bandunda. The crash killed 20 people, including the owner of the airline, 62-year-old Belgian Daniel Filmot, who personally piloted the aircraft. There were no obvious technical problems due to which the plane could crash. It has been suggested that the pilots failed to land the first time, after which they ran out of fuel and the plane crashed to the ground.

According to the British newspaper Daily Telegraph, the only surviving passenger, hospitalized in critical condition in one of the local hospitals, spoke about the causes of the tragedy. As it turned out, there was a crocodile on board the plane. One of the passengers on the flight was transporting the reptile in a sports bag, intending to sell it. During the flight, the animal escaped, causing panic in the cabin of the aircraft.

The plane lost balance and began to fall. Before flying a couple of kilometers to the runway, the plane crashed into a residential building, in which at that moment there was no one by a lucky chance. The report of the commission investigating the incident says: "The frightened stewardess threw herself into the cockpit, followed by the passengers. Despite the desperate efforts of the pilot, the plane lost its balance."

In August, in the theater of marine animals and dolphins "Aquatoria" in Yalta, a crocodile bit a three-year-old child who came with his parents on vacation from Belarusian Brest. The boy received numerous injuries - amputation of the fourth finger of the left hand, incomplete detachment of the third finger, fracture of the metacarpal bones, lacerated wounds from the teeth of a crocodile.

Lauren Failla, a 25-year-old US citizen, was vacationing with her friend in India's Andaman Islands. Once she disappeared while swimming underwater. According to the Associated Press, two days later, the remains of her body were found with terrible lacerations. Local authorities confirmed that she was killed by a crocodile.

In the city of Broome in northwestern Australia, a five-meter combed crocodile in a local wildlife park bit a tipsy 36-year-old man who tried to ride it. The crocodile behaved aggressively and bit the man on the right leg. The man received a serious laceration, but still managed to escape from the park and return to the pub, whose employees called an ambulance. The failed rider was hospitalized and operated on.

In the Mexican resort of Cancun, a crocodile attacked an American tourist when he tried to relieve himself in the water of the lagoon. After the attack, the young man was taken to the hospital with multiple bite wounds on his leg and neck. He also suffered a head injury when the reptile hit him on the ground.

In Angola, crocodile attacks have killed at least nine children in just a few days. National Radio of Angola reported that the dead children were between 10 and 16 years old, they became victims of ruthless reptiles when they came to the Keva River to draw water.

Crocodile attack continues. And, apparently, such messages will end only when the entire genus of crocodiles disappears from the planet ...

Alligators, crocodiles, caimans and their relatives kill hundreds of people every year. Although most attacks occur in Africa and Asia, these powerful reptiles are also found in a number of places in South America, Australia and the southern United States. Crocodiles don't usually eat humans, but they basically eat whatever they can catch. In addition, they bravely defend their own territory, especially during the breeding season. The best way to be safe in a crocodile habitat is to respect their privacy and be careful around bodies of water where they may be found. In the event of an attack, you have a chance to escape if you act deliberately.

Steps

Part 1

Find out where crocodiles live and stay away from such places. The only reliable way to survive in places where there are crocodiles is to avoid encounters with them. Crocodiles are found in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, the Americas and Australia. Different types of crocodiles live in both fresh and salt water. If you live in or visit the tropics, check with local authorities for the location of crocodiles, alligators, or caimans before approaching any bodies of water.

Be extremely careful near those bodies of water where crocodiles live. Over 90% of crocodile attacks occur in or near water. Crocodiles usually live in stagnant or slowly flowing water, where there is a lot of mud and vegetation. Most often they can be found among mud and in swampy areas. They may also live in lakes, ponds, rivers (including estuaries), man-made canals, and temporary reservoirs. Saltwater crocodiles can be found on the beach and even in the open ocean!

Find out when crocodiles are the most dangerous. Although crocodiles can attack at any time, they are most dangerous at dusk and at night. Be aware of the danger in the daytime and even more so try to stay away from the water after sunset.

• If you still have to be in the dark near a pond where crocodiles live, use headlights or a flashlight and look around more often.

1. Be even more careful during the breeding season. Crocodiles and alligators are most aggressive and dangerous during the breeding season. In addition, during this period, crocodiles often get out on land and make transitions in search of a mate or a suitable place for a nest. Especially ferocious are female crocodiles, who selflessly defend their nests.

   Constantly monitor your surroundings. If you have to be near or in the middle of a body of water in which crocodiles live, do not lose vigilance. Remember that crocodiles are very good at camouflage, and even a giant reptile can only show its nostrils from under the water. Be especially careful near muddy and swampy places, as well as among coastal vegetation. In such cases, it is best to assume that even if you do not see the crocodile, he is hiding somewhere nearby.

   • Keep a safe distance from the water if walking along the shore, and avoid areas with coastal vegetation that crocodiles can hide in.
   • In the event of a threat, the crocodile may hiss. If you hear a crocodile hissing, try to determine where it comes from, and move as quietly and quickly as possible in the opposite direction.

2. Do not walk your dog near areas where crocodiles or alligators can live. Crocodiles are attracted to the movements and sounds made by small animals. For example, American alligators often attack dogs. If you do walk your dog near water, keep it on a leash and pay attention to any movement in or near the water.

   Do not allow small children to play near the water and do not leave them unsupervised in the area where there are crocodiles. Crocodiles prefer to hunt small targets and therefore often attack children.

   Not feed crocodiles or alligators. While feeding, these reptiles lose their natural caution towards humans and begin to associate them with food. Never intentionally feed crocodiles and try not to do so by accident: for example, do not throw fish and other food waste into the water.

   • Not even small crocodiles should be fed. Remember that a fifty-centimeter crocodile can eventually grow into a three-meter monster, whose food will still be associated with people. This is dangerous for both the animal itself and the people who may meet it.

3. If you are going to camp in an area with crocodiles or alligators, choose a location away from water. Place your tent at least 2 meters above the level of the highest nearest body of water and at least 50 meters from the water's edge. Look around the area and check for food waste and debris left by those who may have camped before you. Such waste can attract crocodiles, so clear the area of ​​them before setting up tents. Keep food out of the reach of animals and dispose of food scraps and garbage away from the camp.

   If you spot a crocodile on land, remain calm and try to move slowly to safety. Do not try to approach the animal, attack it or make it move. If you find a crocodile in a residential area, such as a yard or parking lot, first move to a safe distance, and then call the police or the wildlife society.

4. If a crocodile has entered your territory, RUN. If you suddenly stumble upon a crocodile or it starts moving towards you, run away as quickly as possible. Although crocodiles are fast swimmers, on land their maximum speed is about 17 kilometers per hour - most people are able to run a short distance at a higher speed.

   • Run from water so that other crocodiles do not get in your way.
   • Contrary to popular belief, you should not run in zigzags: it is best to run away from a crocodile in a straight line. Humans (and other animals) run fastest along a straight line.

Part 3

1. • If the crocodile just bit and then released you, then it was probably defending itself. In this case, do not try to attack the reptile and try to get away to a safe place as soon as possible.
   • However, if the crocodile does not loosen its grip, it will most likely try to pull you into the water. In this case, it is necessary to attack the reptile in order to force it to let you go.

To a large extent, man is the master of his environment and the likelihood of being attacked, let alone eaten by a wild animal, is a rather rare event. This is certainly true for developed countries and no more. There are still a few creatures in the USA that are dominant even in America, and they are more than capable of eating the average person.

Oddly enough, it seems unfair to meet such large predators in some US states. Florida has all the predators: black bears, cougars, tigers and bull sharks, crocodiles and alligators. Given the proximity of a large number of people to these animals, it can be said that in general they are simply not interested in us as a source of food.

It is estimated that over a million alligators live in Florida alone. They are found in every one of Florida's 67 counties, with fewer in neighboring states. They say in Florida that where there is water, there can be alligators. It can be lakes, rivers, swamps or other bodies of water.

Can crocodiles attack people?

Given the number and proximity of alligators to humans, there must be clashes between these species. Generally speaking, alligators are fearful of humans, as humans have hunted them for centuries up to the point where they were nearly wiped out. Also, people aren't really on their menu. Alligators tend to look for simple options when it comes to food and will only settle for small animals like fish, turtles, and small animals.

However, alligators are opportunists. If the food is close and the alligator is hungry, then he may well decide to attack, even if it is a person.

Of all 23 crocodilian and alligator species, only 8 are known to attack humans unprovoked. Not surprisingly, the saltwater and Nile crocodile are the two biggest killers, but the American alligator (also known as the Mississippian alligator) is also on the list. While these reptiles kill hundreds of people each year, alligators kill just one every year.

There are several reasons why an alligator may attack a person. First, alligators will defend their nest if they think their young are in danger. There is also the possibility of misidentification, as well as the possibility that they may simply view the person as food. This is more likely for larger alligators, but it is also worth considering that an alligator is not inclined to attack anything larger than itself.

Facts about alligators

There are actually two living species of alligators: the Chinese alligator ( Alligator sinensisAlligator mississippiensis). You can probably figure out where they meet! The American alligator is significantly larger than the Chinese alligator, up to 10 times in many cases. This means that the Chinese alligator poses little threat to humans and that is why we will only talk about the American alligator.

The name alligator is believed to have been given by the first Spanish explorers of the Americas, who named these huge reptiles "el legarto", which means "large lizard".

Where do alligators live?

American alligators live in the southeastern states, mainly in Florida and Louisiana, but they also exist in Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Carolina and some counties of Texas, Arkansas and Oklahoma.

Within their habitat, alligators live almost anywhere there is water, except for the sea. It can be in ponds, lakes, swamps, wetlands and rivers. In addition, they also live in brackish water, they can be found in estuaries and mangroves.

What do alligators eat?

In their environment, adult alligators are at the top among predators. Their favorite prey is: turtles, large fish (for example,), birds and various mammals that share their habitat, such as muskrat and nutria.

Alligators are also ambush hunters and are sometimes capable of catching some pretty impressive prey. Not only can dogs be caught in this way, but also. However, hunting can go both ways.

How big do alligators grow?

On average, alligators weigh about 360 kg (790 lb) and reach a length of 4 m (13 ft). Larger specimens can weigh over 450 kg (1,000 lb) and reach a length of 4.4 m (14 ft). The largest alligator ever recorded was caught in the 1890s on Marsh Island in Louisiana, reaching a length of 5.85 m (19 ft). There is some doubt as to the veracity of this claim, and the next largest alligator was found in Alabama, reaching a whopping 4.6 m (15 ft) in length.

How fast can an alligator move?

There are quite a few myths and some confusion about how fast an alligator can move on land. You may have heard the numbers: over 40 km/h (25 mph), but that's not the whole story and it's a little exaggerated. We are talking about the speed of a good sprinter for a short distance at most, but for an alligator, the only time they reach this speed is when it makes the first dash a few feet to grab its prey and catch it by surprise. After that, the alligator is unlikely to reach more than 15 km/h (10 mph). Not only are they easy enough to outrun (even without zigzagging), but alligators are also notorious for not chasing their prey if the initial ambush fails.

Water is their natural environment and here you won't have any chance to swim away from it as they can swim at an astounding top speed of up to 30 km/h (20 mph).

How long do alligators live?

Although it is difficult to calculate the age of an alligator, studies have shown that, on average, they live between 30 and 50 years in the wild. Alligators have been known to live in captivity for over 80 years, as in the case of the alligator Muja from the Belgrade Zoo in Serbia, which has been there since 1937.

Can an alligator kill a person?

A photo. happy alligator

Well, we think we've already answered that question. Any alligator over 2 m (6 ft) in length is a potential danger to humans, especially in the water, where they are in control. With an average size of 2.6 m (8.2 ft) for females and 3.4 m (11.2 ft) for males, most alligators are dangerous to humans.

Alligators as predators have a whole arsenal of formidable weapons, both offensive and defensive. Firstly, the main tool for killing an alligator is its jaws. They are lined with 74 to 80 conical teeth each up to 2.5 cm (in) long. The purpose of these teeth is to grab prey and prevent it from escaping.

The jaws of the American alligator are among the most powerful on the planet. In a study conducted by Dr. Greg Erickson of Florida State University in 2005, he was able to measure the bite force of an American alligator, it was the most powerful bite ever recorded. A bite from a wild alligator 4 m (13 ft) long showed a force of almost 3000 PSI (pounds per square inch), which is 3 times stronger than a bone-crushing hyena bite. While the record did not beat the 5.5 m (17 ft) saltwater crocodile bite force of 3,700 psi in 2012, it is still a formidable and powerful bite.

This means that a large alligator is not only capable of crushing skulls and rib cages and biting through limbs, but there is also no escape from it if it has grabbed its prey. All this serves to immobilize the prey, but the kill usually occurs by drowning. Like their relatives, crocodiles, large prey alligators will use "death spin" to gain control of them as well as tear them apart. Alligators and crocodiles do not have cutting teeth and therefore must tear open any prey that is too large to swallow whole.

This method of attack requires great strength, and the alligator possesses it. The tail is practically solid muscle and is where it generates its power.

These hunting methods can also be used by the alligator when in contact with people. While most of the fatal attacks have been in the water, large alligators have also been known to hunt on land. It has been established that at a depth of 50 m (170 ft) from the surface of the water, the animal is able to lie down in anticipation, it will be ready for a lightning attack and capture almost everything that is nearby. This type of hunting usually occurs at night, so a mistaken identification can serve as a real attack on a person.

A photo. Scaled Alligator Plates

Thus, the alligator is a finely honed killing machine. However, it would not have survived for about 180 million years if it had not been very well protected. Like many other members of the crocodile order, alligators are well protected, making them very difficult to reach, even for firearms. The skin itself is very tough, but it is the actual armor on the back where the skin contains bony plates known as osteoderms.

How to survive an alligator attack?

Alligator attacks are very rare, even in Florida where there are many alligators and people. Perhaps the best way to survive is to avoid the attack itself in the first place. Take special care in areas that are known to be home to these reptiles, this means that in no case should you swim, and you should also avoid the water's edge, because alligators hunt from ambush and can hide, waiting for someone, who will pass by.

The danger zone for an alligator is about half the length of the body, in front, and about 80 or 90 degrees on both sides. This is the distance he can hit very quickly. If you're this close to an alligator, back off and run away. The idea of ​​"running in zigzags" is a myth, just run in a straight line, straight away from the alligator.

The time of day is also an important factor in alligator attacks, they hunt from dusk to dawn.

If in the unlikely event you get attacked, you need to make life as difficult for the alligator as possible. They will not want to fight you after a light meal. Hit in the face and press in the eyes, in this case the alligator is more likely to retreat. He may also try to intercept you for better control of your body and this is when you may have the opportunity to make your escape.

There are also good statistics: the vast majority of alligator attacks do not result in serious injury and very few are actually fatal.

Statistics of alligator attacks on people

Obviously, the alligator is in a different league from the giant crocodiles, but the statistics don't show the whole picture. About 60% of Nile crocodile attacks are fatal, but only 5% of alligator attacks result in death. Ten years ago, Florida was averaging about 11 alligator attacks per year on people, but that number is slowly creeping up. In fact, in recent years, there has been an average of one fatal attack per year.

What is the difference between alligators and crocodiles

Some notice it right away, some later! Ha ha ha! Bad jokes aside, there are several ways to tell these reptiles apart. First, it's worth asking yourself: "Am I located in the southern states of the USA (or on the Yangtze River)?". If the answer is no, then you will almost certainly not meet an alligator.

A photo. Nile crocodile (Crocodylus niloticus)

Physically, these two representatives of crocodiles are very difficult to distinguish in the body below the neck, but there are big differences on the head. The classic way of distinguishing them is in their teeth (from the side) when the mouth is closed, if you can see the upper and lower teeth protruding at the same time, then it is probably a crocodile. Alligators have wider upper jaws, thus overlapping and covering the lower teeth.

The shape of the mouth is also often the key. The alligator has a wider U-shaped mouth compared to the thinner, V-shaped mouth of the crocodile.