Stray dog ran into crocodile infested river after being chased by pack of dogs
A stray dog found itself in a perilous situation, surrounded by three crocodiles the moment it ventured into their river. In what might have seemed like its final moments, a remarkable twist of fate occurred. Astonishingly, two of the crocodiles chose to gently nudge the young stray to safety with their snouts.
Experts observed this unusual behavior and noted that, rather than preying on the stray dog, the marsh crocodiles appeared to be ‘guiding’ it away from the riverbank where a pack of barking feral dogs awaited in the state of Maharashtra, western India.
The scientists described this remarkable behavior in a report published in the Journal of Threatened Taxa, stating, “These crocodiles were actually touching the dog with their snout and nudging it to move further for a safe ascent on the bank and eventually escape. Given that the crocodile was well within striking range and could have easily devoured the dog, yet none of them attacked and instead chose to nudge it towards the bank, implies that the hunger drive was absent.”
A stray dog that was quickly surrounded by three crocodiles as soon as it ran into their river may have thought that it wouldn’t survive another minute
A stray dog found itself in a perilous situation, surrounded by three crocodiles the moment it ventured into their river. In what might have seemed like its final moments, a remarkable twist of fate occurred. Astonishingly, two of the crocodiles chose to gently nudge the young stray to safety with their snouts.
Experts observed this unusual behavior and noted that, rather than preying on the stray dog, the marsh crocodiles appeared to be ‘guiding’ it away from the riverbank where a pack of barking feral dogs awaited in the state of Maharashtra, western India.
The scientists described this remarkable behavior in a report published in the Journal of Threatened Taxa, stating, “These crocodiles were actually touching the dog with their snout and nudging it to move further for a safe ascent on the bank and eventually escape. Given that the crocodile was well within striking range and could have easily devoured the dog, yet none of them attacked and instead chose to nudge it towards the bank, implies that the hunger drive was absent.”
Experts say that instead of devouring the stray dog, the marsh crocodiles ‘guided’ it away from where the barking pack of dogs were waiting for it on the river bank in the state of Maharashtra, western India
The stray dog was trying to escape from a pack of feral dogs
Marsh crocodiles are most commonly found in India and adult males can reach up to 18ft in length and weight up to 1,000 pounds.
The researchers also detailed how they made the ‘curious’ discovery that marsh crocodiles also adore marigolds. They said the muggers were often found floating and banking in the yellow flowers along Savitri river.
They believed that this could be due to the properties of the flower, which would help protect the crocodiles from fungi and bacteria.
‘This behaviour is novel and intriguing,’ the researchers said while adding the behaviour needed further investigation.’