60 THE STORY OF REPTILE LIFE. 



Swamps and pools, and the banks of rivers 

 .are the common haunts of Crocodiles, though 

 some frequent estuaries, and from thence stray 

 far out to sea. 



How these creatures have slowly adapted 

 themselves to their environment we have already 

 seen. We may therefore now pass on to de- 

 scribe the different types of Crocodiles, and the 

 characteristic features and habits of some of the 

 more important species. 



Whether the Crocodiles of to-day should be 

 regarded as representing but a single group, or 

 divided into two separate families, is a moot 

 point with naturalists. Those who hold the 

 latter view consider the Gharial of the rivers of 

 western India and Arakan, and the False Gharial 

 of Malaysia as representatives of a distinct 

 family, the direct descendants of the long- 

 snouted crocodiles of the Cretaceous, whilst the 

 Alligators, Caimans and Crocodiles they regard 

 as descendants of a short-snouted type of the 

 older Jurassic period. 



The Gharial and False Gharial are to be 

 distinguished externally by the length of the 

 snout and slenderness of the teeth. There are 

 besides certain distinguishing features to be 

 found in the skeleton, but into these we need 

 not enter. 



But little is known of the habits of the Gharial 

 although in its native rivers it is common enough. 

 The remarkably long snout of the species, and 

 the peculiar slenderness of the teeth are pro- 

 bably adaptations to facilitate the capture of its 

 prey, which appear to consist almost entirely of 



