Gharials once thrived in all the major river systems of the Indian subcontinent, spanning the rivers of its northern part from the Indus River in Pakistan across the Gangetic floodplain to the Irrawaddy River inMyanmar. Today, they are extinct in the Indus River, in the Brahmaputra of Bhutan and Bangladesh and in the Irrawaddy River.
Gharials are arguably the most thoroughly aquatic of the extant crocodilians, and adults apparently do not have the ability to walk in a semi-upright stance as other crocodilians do. They are typically residents of flowing rivers with deep pools that have high sand banks and good fish stocks. Exposed sand banks are used for nesting.
Young gharials eat insects, larvae, and small frogs. Mature adults feed almost solely on fish, although some individuals have been known to scavenge dead animals. Their snout morphology is ideally suited for preying on fish. Their long, narrow snouts offer very little resistance to water in swiping motions to snap up fish in the water. Their numerous needle-like teeth are ideal for holding on to struggling, slippery fish. Gharials will often use their body to corral fish against the bank where they can be more easily snapped up.
The mating season is during November through December and well into January. The nesting and laying of eggs takes place in the dry season of March, April, and May. This is because during the dry season the rivers shrink a bit and the sandy river banks are available for nesting. Between 30 and 50 eggs are deposited into the hole that the female digs up before it is covered over carefully. After about 90 days, the juveniles emerge, although there is no record of the female assisting the juveniles into the water after they hatch. However, the mother does protect the young in the water for a few days until they learn to fend for themselves.
As do all large crocodilians, the gharial starts out life fairly small. Hatchlings measure approximately 37 cm (15 in) long . Young gharials can reach a length of 1 m (3.3 ft) in eighteen months. The average body weight of the species is from 159 to 250 kg (350 to 550 lb). Males commonly attain a total length of 3 to 5 m (9.8 to 16 ft), while females are smaller and reach a body length of up to 2.7 to 3.75 m (8.9 to 12.3 ft)
Unlike most crocodilians, the gharial is not a man-eater and tends to be very sensitive when intimidated by humans. Despite its immense size, its thin and fragile jaws render it physically incapable of consuming a large animal, especially a human being. The myth that gharials eat humans may come partly from their similar appearance to crocodiles and also since jewellery has been found in their stomachs. However, the gharial may have swallowed this jewellery while scavenging corpses or as gastroliths used to aid digestion or buoyancy management.
This year the lack of rain in the monsoon season was blamed for many of the power outages the country suffered as much of its power comes from hydroelectricity. It was, however, good news for the gharial. During monsoon season many young can be killed by flooding. This year, because of the low rainfall, it is hoped that the majority of hatchlings will survive.
