Foreword

Preface

Acknowledgements1. INTRODUCTION

Introducing crocodylians

The living species of crocodylians

The growth of scientific knowledge about crocodylians

Body size and age2. THE CROCODYLIAN FAMILY TREE

The modern crocodylians and their relationships

Extinct Crocodylia and other crocodile-like reptiles; crocs in 'deep time'

Summary3. CROCODYLIANS CLOSER UP

The external features of crocodylians

Skull and musculoskeletal system4. LOCOMOTION, BUOYANCY, AND TRAVEL

Crocodylians on land

Crocodylians in the water

Buoyancy

Stomach stones (gastroliths)

Capacity for long distance travel5. SENSORY SKILLS AND BRAIN

Vision

Hearing, movement and balance

Brain and cranial nerves

Olfaction and gustation (chemosensation)

Sense organs of the skin

Cognitive capacities and learning6. FEEDING, DIGESTION, AND NUTRITION

What do crocodylians eat?

Prey capture and handling

Digestion

Nutrition7. ENERGY SUPPLY AND DELIVERY

The metabolic engines: crocodylian biochemistry and metabolism

Whole body metabolism (anaerobic and aerobic)

The respiratory system

The circulatory system8. THE WORLD'S MOST EXTRAORDINARY HEART

A tour of the crocodylian heart

Non-shunting and shunting patterns of blood flow

What is the significance of pulmonary by-pass shunting in crocodylians?9. DIVING AND SUBMERGENCE BEHAVIOUR AND PHYSIOLOGY

When? Why? How deep? How, and how for so long?

Diving behaviour of crocodylians in the wild

Physiological support for crocodylian diving

What are the longest submergences by crocodylians that can be supported aerobically?10. THERMAL RELATIONS

Introduction: crocodylians are not like other reptiles

Daily and seasonal patterns of body temperature

Behaviours that modify body temperature

Physiological mechanisms of thermoregulation

Thermal acclimatization

Crocodylians may have endothermic ancestry

Could even the basal archosaurs have been endothermic?11. SALT AND WATER BALANCE

Salt and water balance in Crocodylus porosus: an introduction to crocodylian osmoregulation

Salt and water balance in other crocodylians

Living out of water, 'aestivation'

Salt glands and implications for crocodylian evolutionary history12. REPRODUCTION

Introduction: they're more like birds

Oviducts, ovulation, fertilisation and the gravid stage13. POPULATIONS AND POPULATION ECOLOGY

Populations (and species)

Population dynamics: changes through time

Case Histories14. CONSERVATION, COMMERCIALISATION, AND CONFLICT

Introduction

Historical perspective

The future for crocodylians?INDEX