Why Do Crocodiles Eat Rocks?
Why Do Crocodiles Eat Rocks? Crocodiles swallow rocks to aid in grinding food for digestion. The crocodile swallows its prey whole, or tears off big chunks of food and gulps it down without chewing it. The food goes down into the crocodile’s stomach. There, strong muscles churn the food, along with the rocks in the crocodile’s stomach.
The rocks grind up the food so the crocodile can digest it better. Some people think that the weight of the rocks in the crocodile’s stomach may also help the animal to lie just below the surface of the water, as it waits for prey at the water’s edge.
Crocodiles can remain submerged for as long as an hour. The average croc has 10 to 15 pounds of stone in its stomach; but, for such large creatures, they really eat very little and not very often. Because they are slow moving and cold blooded, they are able to survive on about the same amount of food as a small bird.
A crocodile will attack just about anything that goes near the water, but sticks to eating fish most of the time, with occasional turtles, small animals and birds. They also enjoy tasty raccoons, muskrats and even capybara, the most popular treat of the South American caiman.