CROCODILE. 547 



have exceeded the length of thirty feet. The armour with which 

 the upper part of the body is covered may be numbered among 

 the most elaborate pieces of nature's mechanism. In the full grown 

 animal, it is so strong and thick as easily to repel a musket ball ; on 

 the lower' parts it is much thinner, and of d more pliable nature : 

 the whole -animal appears as if covered with the most regular and 

 curious carved- work : the colour of a full-grown crocodile is black- 

 ish-brown above, and yellowish. white beneath ; the upper parts of 

 the legs and the sides varied with deep yeilow, and in some parts 

 tinged with green. In the younger animals the colour on the upper 

 parts is a mixture of brown and pale yellow, the under parts being 

 nearly white: the eyes ate provided with a nicti ating membrane, 

 or transparent, moveable pellicle, as in birds : the mouth is of vast 

 width, the rictus or gape haviug a somewhat flexuous outline, and 

 both jaws being furnished with vtry numerous sharp pointed teeth, 

 of which those about the middle part of each jaw considerably ex- 

 ceed the rest in size, and seem analogou; to the canine teeth in the 

 viviparous quadrupeds or mammalia: th? number of teeth, in each 

 jaw, is thirty, or more*; and they are so disposed as to alternate 

 with each other when the mouth is closed : on taking out the teeth 

 and examining the alveoli, it has been found that small teeth were 

 forming beneath, in order to supply the loss of the others when 

 shed : the auditory forimaua are situated on the top of the head, 

 above the eyes, and are moderately large, oval, covered by a mem- 

 brane, having a longitudinal slit or opening, and thus in some de- 

 gree resembling a pair of closed eyes : the legs are short, but 

 strong and muscular : the fore feet have five toes, and are un- 

 webbed : the hind feet have only four toes, which are united to- 

 wards their base by a strong web: the two interior toes on each of 

 the fore feet, and the interior one of the hind feet, are destitute of 

 claws + : on the other toes are strong, sharp, and curved claws : 

 the tail is very long, of a laterally compressed form, and furnished 



The number is observed to vary in different specimens; probably from 

 the different age of the animal. In the skeleton described by Grew, and 

 which measured about fourteen feet in length, there were thirty teeth in each 

 jaw, and those teeth which appeared to be the least worn, were serrated by 

 small denticulations on each side. 



f In the skeleton described by Grew there were claws on all the toe*, 



2 N Q 



