Crocodiles Can Surf Ocean Currents

Great. first it was giant flying sharks, now it’s giant surfing crocodiles. What’s next: hyenas on motorcycles?

“Saltwater crocodiles enjoy catching a wave and can travel hundreds of kilometres by ‘surfing’ on ocean currents, a study suggests. […] During the research, a team led by Dr Hamish Campbell, from the University of Queensland, captured 20 crocodiles living in the North Kennedy tidal river in Queensland, northern Australia, and tagged them with satellite transmitters. They found that during the period of study, eight of them ventured out into the open ocean. One travelled from the river mouth all the way to the west coast of the Cape York Peninsula, in Queensland’s far north. That amounts to a total of 590km covered over 25 days.”

Not only that—they actually wait until the tide goes out so they can take advantage of the currents:

“But the team discovered that crocodiles would only set out on a long journey within an hour of the tide changing. This allowed them to ‘catch a wave’. They put their trips on hold when the tides reversed, moving out of the river and on to the banks.”

Happy swimming, everyone!

P.S. The photo above of the saltwater croc (click to enlarge) was taken by yours truly on the South Alligator River in the Northern Territory, Australia, in 2006. She’s a beauty, no?