9781422275016

I N T R O D U C T I O N

The gaping maw of this huge alligator is a fearsome sight, although the creature may be only attempting to cool off. The teeth are shed on a continuous basis, which explains why even adjacent teeth are of different lengths. The alligator is missing a number of teeth that have been shed and will be replaced.

T he scream was loud and piercing, given by the young woman running the motor on our 6-meter (20-foot) skiff, just as the bow dipped beneath the roiling, muddy waters of the Alligator River. The sound reached our other two boats. They turned and raced back to rescue us, none too soon. One of the fellows in the second boat snapped a photo that showed the head of a 5-meter (16-foot) saltwater crocodile in the midst of our floating gear, looking for my two compan- ions and myself. The huge croc bit into my life preserver and pulled it underwater, but all he got was the bun, no meat; I wasn’t wearing the preserver, and for that I’m thankful. We were in Kakadu National Park in northern Australia, the area made famous by the movie Croc- odile Dundee . It is legendary for the numbers of the huge saltwater, or Indo-Pacific, crocodiles that inhabit the area. I was told by the locals that five people had been killed by crocs there in the last 7 years. The term “man-eater” has much to do with people’s fascina- tion and interest in these huge reptiles. We humans like to think

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