Size comparisons

[LonePredator]

(04-26-2022, 02:30 AM)KGuateGojira Wrote:

(04-26-2022, 01:29 AM)LonePredator Wrote: I took the 3 mugger weights, one of 111kg at 274cm by Brander which you provided just a moment ago. Then I took the 195kg at 300cm and then I took the 750kg at 560cm and then I tested this relation with these weights but it obviously did not match but I would still say that a 350cm mugger should likely be 300kg+.

Remember that, sadly, you only have one real weight (the captive one), the other two are estimations and I don't know where you got that 750 kg figure, there is no record about that. In fact, in the webpage of the Wildlife Institute of India they quote a maximum weight of 450 kg, check it:

"The Mugger crocodile is a medium to large crocodilian species; an adult male may reach up to 4.5 meters (18 ft) in length and weigh 450 kg (1000 lbs). It has a distinctive aspect, and is the most alligator like of all crocodile species. While juvenile’s generally have a light tan colouring with some black cross-banding on the body and tail, adult specimens are generally gray to brown."

Link: https://www.wii.gov.in/nmcg/priority-spe...-crocodile

Also, Whitaker & Whitaker (1984) quote that the maximum size reported is of 5.63 m but they do not provide body mases, check it:

*This image is copyright of its original author

As real (and reliable) weights of big crocodiles are very scarce, I leave you this detail that may be helpfull. In Costa Rica the Dr Brady Barr measured and weighed what could be the biggest American crocodile ever measured and the only actually weighed, all recorded in video. The animal measured 482 cm (incomplete tail) and they estimated probably up to 5 meters and the beast weighed 1,250 lb (567 kg) and final weight excluding gear says it was 540 kg.

About the Wildlife Institute of India data. Lots of things are wrong and unreliable about it. Let me explain...

It’s possible that they put this data by mistake because it says “an adult may reach 4.5m (18ft) in length” but the conversion is wrong. 4.5 metres is 14.75 feet but it says 18 feet which is wrong conversion. 18 feet is 550cm but it’s possible that 18 feet is referring to the 563cm length by Whitaker which is 18ft 5.5inches but they may have rounded it off to just 18feet. I strongly believe this is the case because they even cite a source belonging to Whitaker just in the next paragraph.

*This image is copyright of its original author

And again that 450kg weight is unreliable because no such confirmed weight of 450kg exists for a Mugger and as expected, they did not provide any source for the 450kg weight either.

Now, as the 5.63m length by Whitaker is reliable and is based on 2 specimens, then the maximum possible weight for Mugger Crocodiles based on a max length of 5.63m would definitely be A LOT more than 450kg.

A 5.63m Mugger should be about 1,000kg or more based on the 195kg weight and the 111kg esimate by Brander but even if we assume same weight/length relation as other crocodile species, it would still be around 2 times more than 450kg so the maximum weight for a Mugger should be around 1000kg or more. I would personally say somewhere between 1050-1150kg for that 5.63m Mugger but I can’t say it with enough conviction as we have very less data for Muggers but I can say with conviction that it's no less than 800-900kg.

In fact, every normally available information about crocodilians seems VERY wrong to me. The standard of size of crocodilians is normally considered by their length rather than weight except for the obvious Gharial and this is so wrong and this is likely also due to the fact that there is lot of data about length of crocodilian species but barely any weight data so people just compare them based on length.

People say Nile Crocodiles are the largest after Saltwater Crocs but there is nothing concrete to support this claim because with the data I have seen of 50 years ago, the average weight of Nile Crocodiles is only around 200kg @ 3.66m in Lake Turana (Graham, 1968), 3.65m from Kruger so the weight should be same in Kruger too (Guggisberg, 1972) I only have access to the first one so I’ll attach the link below. (See page no. 76)

http://ufdcimages.uflib.ufl.edu/aa/00/00/75/90/00001/lakerudolfcrocodilesalistairgraham.pdf

As Whitaker mentions that the average Muggers are 300-350cm then let’s assume 325cm (3.25m), then 325cm Muggers can definitely be as heavy or even heavier than average Nile Crocodiles based on the 195kg weight @ 300cm (which was not even as bulky as normal full sized Muggers) and 111kg estimate @ 273cm by Brander but again this is so few data to make a concrete statement.

In terms of weight, that 5.63 metre Mugger could possibly be heavier than the Lolong Saltwater Crocodile of 1075kg but as long as the 5.63m croc was not in a starving and emaciated state, there’s NO way it was any less than 850kg.

I have seen data which STRONGLY suggests (but not enough to prove) that Muggers could likely be the third heaviest or probably even second heaviest living crocodilians in terms of average weight and that 5.63m specimen could have been heavier than Lolong but at least 800-900kg minimum.

As you said the largest reliable weight for the American Crocodile was just less than 600kg, then the 5.63 metre Mugger was definitely much more heavier than that American Crocodile specimen as well. The minimum possible weight for that 5.63m Mugger is 850kg unless it was in a starving state but a ton seems more likely so the maximum weight for Muggers should be stated as at least 850kg. Reply